Fox Fire 4
by swirlheart
Summary: While wandering the woods, Himawari finds and befriends a kitsune. Learning that the kitsune knows about Naruto and wishes to see the Leaf Village, she takes him home. Soon she realizes that this kitsune is trickier than she thought and unwittingly puts the village into jeopardy. Rated T to be safe. Please read and review! Thanks!
1. Chapter 1

Fox Fire 4:

While wandering the woods, Himawari finds and befriends a kitsune. Learning that the kitsune knows about Naruto and wishes to see the Leaf Village, she takes him home. Soon she realizes that this kitsune is trickier than she thought and unwittingly puts the village into jeopardy.

**Chapter 1:**

"Seventh."

Naruto rubbed his forehead. "Is it Boruto again?" he asked, annoyed.

"No, not this time."

Since he had only just scolded his son an hour ago for writing 'idiot' on his office door, Naruto was relieved.

"Then what is it?"

Udon stepped forward and handed Naruto a letter. "This letter came for you. Special delivery."

"Special?" Naruto took the envelope from the young man and opened it at his desk. He carefully pulled out the single piece of paper and unfolded it.

Shikamaru peered over to catch a glimpse of the letter when he saw Naruto's smile.

"What is it?" he asked. "It's not a mission request, is it?"

He already knew it wasn't. They didn't receive mission requests in this way. Sure, they received letters, but they were never labeled 'special delivery'. Still, there was always a chance that he was wrong. It could have been mislabeled or someone made a mistake. It was also possible that the writer disguised the letter so it would reach the Hokage faster for whatever reason.

However, Shikamaru knew it wasn't a mission request solely on account of Naruto's smile.

Naruto lowered the letter. "Nah. It's an invitation."

"An invitation to what?"

"To attend a party celebrating the thirteenth birthday of a prince. In Ayahuasca."

Shikamaru put a hand to his chin. "Why does that town sound so familiar?"

Naruto's grin widened. "That's the town that's ruled by Prince Akio. Of course, he's king now. The prince is his son. The royal family have kitsune for neighbors."

Shikamaru's eyes widened with recollection. "Ah, that's right. The mountain with all the kitsune." He smiled as well. "Your friends."

Naruto sighed, a tender expression on his face. "Yeah. And they still consider me a part of their pack."

His heart still beat warm when he thought of them. He still considered himself to be a part of their pack as well. They welcomed him into their family without much fuss. They were good friends.

"If you attend this party, you can visit them," Shikamaru told him.

"That's true. I could."

Udon looked troubled. "You can't just leave to go to some kid's birthday party in another town. What about the village? The Chunin exams aren't that far away. We need to start preparing. Not to mention the forms that need your signature for the-"

"I get it, Udon. Thanks." Naruto sat back in his chair. "I know I can't go. I can't leave the village. I know this."

Not when there was so much that needed to be done. At the very least, he couldn't leave the village unattended. That alone spelled trouble.

"Besides, if I couldn't be there for my own kid's birthday, how would it look if I went out of my way to go to a party for someone else's kid? That wouldn't be fair."

It wouldn't.

"Although…" Naruto looked at the ceiling. "The king is a friend. And the kitsune are more than friends to me. And the town Akio rules over is pretty well off. Secure and fruitful. It wouldn't be a bad idea to conduct business with them."

"What kind of business?"

"Well," Naruto said with a slight chuckle. "With the kitsune looking over the town, it's not like they would need our protection. But we could trade with them. Akio already trades with other lands. Why not us?"

Udon seemed hesitant. "I suppose..?"

Shikamaru knew exactly what Naruto was doing. He was coming up with an excuse to visit the town. If he was going there on business and there just happened to be a party going on, it wouldn't look as bad.

However, there was still one problem.

"You'd still need to leave the village, Naruto."

Naruto sighed. "Well… I could be in two places at once."

* * *

"Boruto, don't leave your dirty clothes lying around on the floor like this," said Hinata.

"Sorry, Mom." Boruto helped his mother pick up his dirty clothes.

Hinata watched him clean up with a frown on his face. It wasn't because she called attention to his mess or because he had to pick it up. It was because his father had scolded him again.

"I'm so glad I have you two to help me out with the chores. If I had to do it all by myself, it would take forever. And if I had even more chores to do, I'd be too busy to do anything else. I'd be stretched so thin."

Boruto frowned harder. "Why can't Dad make a clone take his place? It's not like he has to do anything but work anyway."

Boruto knew what she was hinting at and he wasn't giving his father any sympathy.

"We'd all like to spend more time with him. It's just that-"

The front door opened.

"Hey, guys!" Naruto called from the hall.

"Daddy!" Himawari came running. "Papa's home, Papa's home!"

Boruto stood up in surprise. "Dad?" He was actually home before dinner for once.

Naruto came walking in with Himawari strapped to his hip. She wouldn't let go. "Hey, Boruto. Himawari… How would you two like to go on a trip with your dad?"

"A trip?!" Himawari asked excitedly.

"With you?" Boruto was very shocked. "When? Where? What's the catch?"

Naruto held up the letter. "I got an invite to a prince's birthday party. Would you like to join me? I bet it's going to be good."

"For a prince?! A real prince?!" Himawari squealed. She was even more excited than her brother.

Boruto was suspicious. It wasn't like his father to drop everything in order to take them on a trip. Outside of the village, no less.

"It's in a couple of days." Naruto pulled Himawari off his leg and stood her up in front of him. "I've been to this place before so I'll be happy to take you there. What do you say?"

"Yes!" Himawari jumped up and down.

"What about you, Boruto? Interested?"

Boruto eyed his father up and down. He expected to be escorted by a clone. There was no way his father would ever take time off to take them to such an event. He could barely be away from his desk for their own birthday parties.

Even so, there was still a chance, a very small chance, that Naruto himself would take them. If that was the case, then maybe he should take up the offer. This may have been his only chance to spend time with his father.

"Well… Ok."

Naruto grinned. "Great. Tomorrow you can pack a bag and we'll set out. The King might let us spend the night. I'm not sure how long the party will go so it's nice to be prepared."

"What about Mama?" asked Himawari. "Is she coming?"

"Are you?" Naruto asked.

"I'd love to but I already promised Sakura I'd help her out with something that day. I'm sorry."

"That's ok," said Naruto. "It'll just be me and the kids. Right, guys?"

"Yeah!"

Boruto turned away. "Yeah, right," he mumbled under his breath.

* * *

The day finally came for them to set off for the King's palace. Himawari packed her best dress for the occasion and her dress shoes. She rarely ever got the opportunity to use them and now that she could, she made sure to have them shining like new.

She was so excited, Boruto didn't have the heart to tell her his doubts about the party. Not the party itself, but whether or not their father would be joining them.

As instructed, he packed his bag and was ready to leave. He kept all his feelings of doubt to himself. He didn't want his sister bursting into tears, insisting that their father would be there. Or crying when she found out the truth.

She would find out at some point, but Boruto wanted her to live in a fantasy a little longer. Why break her heart now?

Then their father showed up. "I'll take them from here," Naruto told Hinata and gave her a kiss.

Boruto picked up his bag and carried it on his back to the door. Himawari did the same.

"Let me help you with that," Naruto said, bending down.

"I got it, Papa."

"I know you do, but I want to help."

He peered inside her bag, making sure she had everything she needed. Then with a nod of his head, he zipped the bag shut.

"Ouch!" Naruto pulled his hand back and looked at his finger. "Jeez, that was a nasty pinch."

Boruto looked closely at his father's finger and saw a tiny drop of blood from where the zipper caught his flesh.

His eyes widened. If this had been a clone, it would have popped by now. Once they were injured, they vanished.

This was his real father!

Naruto was coming with them in the flesh.

Hinata put a bandage on Naruto's finger and handed him the bag.

"Ready, guys?"

Boruto nodded with a big smile. "Yup!"

If Naruto was really coming with them, what reason did he have to be upset? He was getting his wish.

"Ok!" Naruto pumped his fist into the air. "Let's go!"

"Yeah!" his children shouted.

Naruto opened the front door. "To the part-"

"Naruto!"

"Eh?"

Shikamaru was standing in the doorway with his hands on his hips. "You're still going? After everything I've said?"

"I…"

Shikamaru saw the children standing behind Naruto. He sighed. "What about all that work back at the office? You can't dump it all on me."

"I wasn't going to."

"And the meeting this afternoon. What do I tell them? We have people traveling."

"I know that."

"And let's not forget-"

"I get it. You don't have to nag me. You sound just like Sakura when you do that."

Shikamaru's face turned red for a moment then returned to its normal color. He sighed.

Then he looked at Naruto's children. "Can you give us a second?"

They looked at Naruto, unsure.

Naruto grinned at them. "I got this. We'll leave in just a second, ok?"

Boruto and his sister went back inside.

As soon as the door was closed, their mother came to see what was going on.

"Weren't you leaving? What's the delay?"

"Shikamaru showed up and he's talking to Dad."

"Oh, I see."

"Daddy's still coming, right?" asked Himawari. "He is, right?"

Hinata smiled. "Oh, you know how important this trip is for him, don't you? He wants to take you and that's what he'll do."

Before they could say anything else, the door opened again.

"Ok, guys," said Naruto. "I chased him away. We can go now."

Boruto stepped outside and didn't see a trace of Shikamaru anywhere. He looked back at his father and saw the bandage on his finger. Pleased, he held the door open for his father and sister.

"Come on, we don't want to be late."

"We'll get there," Naruto assured. "Bye, Hinata. And don't worry about a thing. They'll be fine."

Hinata gave a small wave, watching them go from the doorstep.

Boruto kept a solid hold on his father's arm until they reached the gate. He didn't want anyone stopping them from leaving together. They passed the front gate without incident and were on their way. Only then did Boruto let go of his father.

"We're going to a real ball! A fancy ball for a real prince!" Himawari bounced. "Papa, will it be really fancy?"

"I bet."

"And lots of food?"

"So much food."

"Lots and lots?"

"Yup. And a cake as big as you."

"Wow! Really?"

"I bet."

"I want to see it now!"

"We'll get there. Don't worry. It's not going anywhere."

Boruto walked beside his dad as they walked. "And neither are you," he said under his breath.

* * *

As they traveled, Naruto played games with his children. To help them get there faster, they hitchhiked. They rode in the back of a cart carrying hay to a farm in the direction they were traveling. Himawari observed how hard the blocks of hay were. They had to sit on them no matter how uncomfortable they were. When the driver had to turn off down another path, they got out of the cart and parted ways.

Naruto looked around the forest with a smile. "We're getting close."

"How close?" asked Himawari.

Naruto pointed. "Through those trees there. We'll reach the top of a hill that overlooks the whole town and you can see the palace on your right. It sits atop a smaller hill a short distance away from the town."

"Really? Let's go see."

Himawari and Boruto held hands as they ran. The dirt path was easy to run on. Himawari managed to keep up with her brother's strides and they reached the top of the hill within seconds.

"Oh, wow! Look, Daddy! Papa, look!" Himawari pointed to the waterfall cascading down the mountain in front of them. "Isn't that pretty?"

Naruto stood behind his children and looked at the mountain. "Yeah. It is a sight, isn't it?"

The memories all came flooding back.

Running up and down that mountain, zipping through the trees, drinking from that waterfall. The chattering voices of his foxy friends. The blue and green wisps of flame from their tails and paws.

Their battles, their playtime. Everything they had been through together. It all came rushing back when he saw that mountain.

Boruto saw the sparkle in his father's eye and wondered what he was thinking about.

"Come on. Let's let the king know we're here."

Naruto took his kids down the path into the town. Some buildings were old and some were new. Some buildings only had a new roof. He imagined it was on account of the battle in the past, back when the king was still a prince.

He took his children up to the front gate and showed the guards his invitation. They let him through and an escort was there to see them inside.

The foyer was just as Naruto remembered it. Open with a long carpet leading from the front door, up the stairs and up to the second level. His children, however, had never seen the inside of the palace before. To them, it was jaw-dropping.

"Naruto, my friend." The king came down the carpeted stairs with his son in tow. "So good to see you again. And you've brought your children. Delightful."

"Hey, Akio," Naruto said casually. "These are my kids. Boruto, Himawari, say hi to Akio, the king."

They both bowed. "Thanks for having us, King Akio."

"The pleasure is mine." Akio pulled his son to the front. "Let me present my son, Prince Hoshi."

Hoshi and Boruto locked eyes. They remembered each other.

Akio gave his son a nudge. "Please greet them properly."

Hoshi sighed. He straightened his back and dipped his body forward slightly. "Welcome to our home, honored guests," he said in a rehearsed manor.

Boruto could tell the king had instructed him to speak in this fashion. The introduction sounded forced. Having met Hoshi before, Boruto knew this wasn't how the prince wanted to greet them.

"Well done, Hoshi. Very good." Akio addressed Naruto again. "It's a pleasure to see you again. On good terms, too. The celebration won't be for some time. If you like, you can make your way to one of our rooms until this evening. My servants will attend to your needs."

"I got this for the prince," Boruto said, abruptly. He held up a poorly wrapped gift in his hand.

"Gifts aren't until-"

"I want my present!" insisted Hoshi and made a grab for it.

"Ho-"

Akio wasn't quick enough to stop him. Hoshi grabbed the gift from Boruto and opened it then and there.

As soon as he saw what it was, he hastily wrapped it back up and shoved it back into Boruto's hands.

"N- Never mind! It can wait until this evening," he said hastily.

Akio looked at the wrapped object. "What is it?"

"Nothing!" Hoshi said quickly.

"Hoshi…"

Hoshi shuttered, panicked. "He… He, uh… He should have waited until this evening like everyone else. For that reason, we should not accept his gift. Let's forget about it, Father."

Akio looked at Boruto. "Show me the gift, please."

"It's ok! His gift is hardly worthy for a noble-"

"Hoshi, I am speaking to Boruto."

"But-"

"Hoshi," he said sternly and Hoshi shut his mouth.

"Open it," Akio ordered Boruto who obeyed.

Boruto unwrapped the gift. He noticed that Hoshi was trying to hide behind his father with an anxious look on his face. He must have been in trouble.

But why? How could Boruto's gift get him in any sort of trouble?

Akio held up the anklet.

Naruto blinked. "That looks familiar. Wasn't that yours, Akio?"

Akio turned to his son. "Hoshi…" he said slowly. "What… was our family heirloom… doing in Boruto's possession?"

"What anklet?" Hoshi muttered without making eye-contact.

Akio held it in Hoshi's face. "This… is a family heirloom passed down from king to prince for generations. It belonged to my father and his father before him. I wore it when I was a prince and when you were born, I gave it to you, the new prince. Why did a ninja have it?"

"What anklet?" Hoshi repeated.

Himawari tugged on Naruto's sleeve. "Daddy, what's an heirloom?"

"Something that's kept in the family and passed down through the generations," he explained softly.

"Hoshi gave it to me as payment for a mission," explained Boruto. "I forgot to give it back to him when I was leaving the town. It was late at night. When my dad told me that the birthday party was for you, I thought this would make a good present. I didn't know what else to get for a prince, and since you gave this to me, I figured I would return it to you this way."

Akio frowned. "Hm."

Hoshi continued to look away.

"Son, this is not something we hand out as payment for anything and we do not give it away to people. This belongs in the family."

"I'm sorry…"

Akio handed the anklet to his son. "Keep this strapped to your ankle where it belongs and do not take it off again. This is yours and you do not give it to anyone other than your son, is that understood?"

Hoshi nodded.

"Am I clear?"

"Yes, Father."

"Good." Akio straightened up. "Put it on."

Hoshi obeyed.

Boruto felt guilty. He didn't mean to get the prince in trouble. "Sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"It's fine." The king smiled at him. "Please, make yourselves at home. If you'll excuse me, there's still much work to be done. The entire town is invited tonight."

"Actually, can I talk to you about something?" Naruto asked.

"About what?"

"Business."

Akio gave a nervous chuckle. "I'm sorry, Naruto, but the entire day has been set aside for my son. I've cancelled all meetings and refuse to conduct business today with anyone."

"Really?" Boruto asked, seeing the king's devotion to his son. "So even if there were people who needed to meet with you today..?"

"Today is for my son. I would have to refuse them."

Boruto wished his father would do such a thing. He never set aside a whole day just for him. Not even when it was his birthday.

"But that's the only reason I was allowed to come here today," said Naruto. "They wouldn't let me leave the village unless I promised to talk business with you."

Boruto shot him a look.

So this whole thing was a business trip? He didn't really care about taking them to a ball at a prince's palace? It was just an afterthought?

"Sorry, but I can't," said Akio.

"Hang on a second." Naruto stood in front of Akio. "King Akio, may I talk business with you?"

"Not today, no."

"Can I talk business with you another time?"

"Yes."

"Ok!" Naruto clapped his hands together. "I talked business with you. My obligation is fulfilled." Naruto turned to his kids. "This way I can tell Shikamaru without being called a liar. I kept my promise."

Boruto raised a brow at him. "That's pretty sneaky, Dad."

Naruto shrugged.

"Eh, whatever gets the job done. At least now it's all about us, right?"

Naruto nodded. "Yup. Like I said, Shikamaru and the others didn't want me to go. I told him if it was business, then I'd have to be allowed to leave. Even then, no one was on board, but it was the only way I'd be able to get out of there. See?"

"Yeah, I get it." Boruto understood. Naruto had to make it a business trip in order to be allowed to leave. He could accept this but chose not to completely. "Ok, so what now?"

"Well, we have some time before the party. What did you want to do?"

* * *

It's been a while, right? Well, I've kept you waiting long enough.

Hope you're excited for the new Fox Fire fiction.

Please review! ^-^


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

Just before sunset, the palace gates were opened to the public. The townspeople dressed in their finest came through the gate and filed into the foyer. From there they were directed to the grand ballroom.

For most of the day, Boruto and his sister watched the many servants rush around the building carrying everything from lanterns to platters. They carried tablecloths and a great many other things to and from different rooms. Now they were able to see the results of their hard work.

The ballroom looked so elegant. The guests all marveled at the sparkling dishware and floors. Everything was shining. It almost hurt their eyes to gaze around the room.

The king hired an orchestra to play music while the guests mingled and danced.

Himawari fixed her gaze on the desert table and helped herself to one chocolate truffle after another. Boruto sneaked a few himself until his father told both of them to eat some real food.

Naruto looked over at the prince who was welcoming guests with his father. Hoshi didn't look too thrilled about having to do this. He looked bored.

Naruto then glanced out the tall ballroom window to see outside. He couldn't see the mountain from this room. It faced the other direction.

But he could still sense it.

His friends should have been waking up by now. He didn't visit the mountain dwellers earlier because he knew they slept during the day. Otherwise, he would have loved to introduce them to his children. Even if they were unwilling to meet most humans, he figured they would be fine meeting his offspring. If by some chance they weren't, then he would visit them himself. He wanted to catch up.

"Daddy! Daddy, look!" Himawari held up a piece of shrimp. "Look how huge this one is! It's as big as my hand!"

"The king spared no expense for this party, I see." Naruto glanced around with a smile.

"Hey, Dad!" Boruto came over with a plate piled high with everything but vegetables. "Check this out. The chicken's stuffed with sausage. It's spicy. Wanna try it?"

"Sure, why not?" Naruto took a piece off his son's plate. "Hmm. Tasty."

Himawari looked around at the other guests and then at herself. Most of the people here were dressed in their best clothes like her, but the royal family was dressed even better. Her brother and father, however, weren't. Naruto was wearing his normal outfit, minus the Hokage robe and hat. Her brother was wearing casual clothes, but his best ones.

He didn't seem to care that much about his appearance anyway. To him, fancy clothes were just outfits without holes in them. From his wardrobe, at least.

She wondered if the king and his son would be offended.

When the king and queen came over, she was relieved to see them making conversation with Naruto and laughing. Hoshi was still mingling with guests.

"A letter, huh?" Naruto chuckled. "Looking around, I can see why. This place doesn't look any different from the last time I was here. I mean from years ago. Not this most recent time. We have the latest technology now."

"Yes, but our land has its limitations. By choice, mostly."

"Why's that?"

"Oh, a combination of reasons. Laws have some to do with it. Tradition, another. My family believed if it's not broken, don't fix it. Ancestors were big on their ways of doing things." Akio gestured over his shoulder. "And our neighbors are another factor."

"Oh, right. Forcing them to adapt to more human technology stuff. Yeah. I get it."

"My husband likes to be considerate," said the queen.

"That isn't to say some of the villagers don't have access to the new stuff. The palace is more limited," said Akio.

"Totally get it."

Bored with the conversation, Boruto and Himawari tugged on their father. "Come on, let's do something."

"Ok," said Naruto, turning away from the royal couple. "Want to dance?"

"Yeah!"

"Alright then. Let's do it!"

All three rushed onto the dance floor.

The musicians started to play an up-beat tune and the party-goers were in full swing. Even those who did not know how to dance participated, rocking from side to side and jumping with their arms in the air.

Naruto took hold of his children's hands and started to step to the side. Forming a ring, they stepped in a circle, rotating faster and faster. Still holding hands, Naruto jumped and his children followed.

Himawari giggled loudly, having a blast.

Boruto saw how much fun his sister was having and laughed along with her. He was having fun, too. He was happy.

Naruto let go of his daughter's hands and danced with Boruto. They struck different poses and fighting stances, turning training into a dance routine. Then he turned away from Boruto and took his daughter's hands. He let her stand on his feet as they danced. Then he locked hands with both children and they swung their linked arms into the air.

"Ready?" Naruto asked them.

Boruto held hands with his father and allowed himself to be spun. Then Naruto did the same thing with Himawari. He tossed her into the air and caught her and spun her around.

Her joyful squeals drew the attention of several party-goers who stopped to watch them dance.

Naruto linked elbows with his son and the two of them spun. They spun so fast, Boruto was too dizzy to stand and held his father tighter. Naruto slowed their spin and let Boruto go. Boruto stood still but the room was still spinning.

"Me next, me next!" Himawari cheered, bouncing on her feet with her arms in the air.

"Ok, your turn."

Boruto recovered just in time to see his father dance with Himawari. He held her hand above her head and spun her over and over again like a top as he stood beside her. He extended his arm and so did she, striking a pose. Then Naruto spun her back towards himself and caught her in his stomach.

Naruto stood where he was and spun her around again as he stood still.

She spun on her toes, her arm extended high above her head. Her dress fluttered out like a blooming flower. Naruto spun her faster upon request and her giggles filled the room.

POP!

Naruto was gone.

Without his support, Himawari fell over. She landed on her butt and looked up, expecting to see her father but he was nowhere in sight.

"Daddy?"

Boruto's mouth fell open. He was no longer smiling.

He had just seen his father disappear in a puff of smoke.

"A clone…" he whispered. "This whole time… it was a clone."

He remembered being with his real father as they were leaving the house. He knew it was the real one because he got a cut on his finger from zipping Himawari's bag shut. Then Shikamaru came and Naruto asked for some privacy. It was only for a few seconds, but when the door opened again, Shikamaru was gone and Naruto stood alone.

That must have been when they made the switch. Naruto made a clone and the real one left with Shikamaru while the clone took them to the king's palace.

Boruto was fooled by the bandage on his finger. He knew a clone would pop if it sustained an injury. That was how he knew he was with his real father. However, he had overlooked the possibility of his father switching places with a clone while their backs were turned.

"A clone would have the same bandage on his finger as Dad. If he got injured before making the clone. It would look just like him, bandage and all."

All this time, he thought he had been with his father, but it was actually a clone.

His real father was back at the village.

* * *

Naruto looked out the window behind him with a sigh. He knew his clone had popped. He was aware.

"At least they were having fun," he told Shikamaru as they worked. "It seems like a fun party."

Thanks to his clone, he got to dance with his children. A little indirectly, but he had experienced it through the clone.

"You could have just cancelled the event," Shikamaru told him.

"I didn't want to disappoint them. They were so looking forward to it." Naruto sighed. "And I wanted to see the kitsune again. Maybe introduce them to my kids. I bet they would have liked that."

"But your clone's gone now, isn't it?" Shikamaru deduced this from the fact that Naruto was able to describe the party as if he were really there. "Which means your kids are alone."

"Boruto's there and he's a ninja now. He's been on missions. He knows what to do. He can get both of them back safely. I made sure of that. And since they're with Akio, he can provide a ride for them on the off chance that Boruto can't. They're well taken care of."

Naruto didn't think he was being irresponsible. He had made sure they were in good hands. Boruto had been to this place once before in the middle of the night. They had walked home in the dark together. Naruto was sure Boruto knew the way now that he had traveled the path in daylight and moonlight. Akio was there to help them. They knew each other so Naruto trusted him with his children.

Akio would look after them indoors while the kitsune watched over them from outside.

"They're in good hands."

Shikamaru sighed. "You still left them alone. Sort of. I know Boruto's a ninja now so he can handle it. Himawari is a little different."

"Oh, she's pretty tough," Naruto said with a laugh. "Don't let her looks fool you."

"But even Genin have an adult with them. Boruto's still a Genin. Alone with a little girl."

"I've thought this through."

"If you're sure."

Naruto looked down. "I wanted them to have fun. Even if I'm not there to have fun with them. I want them to be happy. And I think they would have been more disappointed if I had cancelled the trip altogether."

"You could have kept your mouth shut about it from the beginning so they would never know."

"I want them to have fun. I can't tell them they can't do anything simply because I can't be with them. I know they want to do things together with me. I do, too. But that shouldn't stop them from living."

He wanted them to go out and have fun. He wanted them to go to parties. He wanted them to make friends. He wanted them to go to new places and see new things.

He wanted them to do what he couldn't.

"If I were able to leave the village, this would be a different story."

Shikamaru pretended to read the paper in front of him. "I know. But it's good that you're trying."

"I just hope Boruto understands that," Naruto said sadly.

* * *

Boruto watched his sister get off the floor and look around in bewilderment. He watched her look from left to right and realize that it was just the two of them now.

"It's always a clone," Boruto said through his teeth. "It's always a clone. Always a clone."

Himawari looked back. "Boruto..?"

"It was a clone, Himawari. It always is."

He looked away in anger and disappointment.

"Big Brother, I…"

"He can't be bothered." Boruto clenched his fists and ran across the dance floor to the other side of the room.

Himawari lost sight of him in the crowd. He had either left the room or was standing by the wall. She couldn't tell.

She knew he was upset. She was sad, too. She was having such fun with her father.

Boruto was upset it was a clone. Himawari was upset that the dance was over.

She knew a clone wasn't the same as spending time with her real father, but she understood how busy he was. Spending time with a clone was better than nothing as far as she was concerned.

Boruto didn't see it that way.

Himawari felt a hand on her shoulder and turned around. The prince was standing behind her.

"Oh! Prince Hoshi, uh…" She quickly bowed to him.

He didn't seem to mind whether she bowed or not. This was a social interaction.

"Your dad wasn't really here, was he?" he asked.

Himawari shook her head. "One of his clones brought us. We didn't know until just now."

"I see." Hoshi glanced around at the party guests who carried on as if nothing had happened. "I saw your brother use a cloning thing before when he was helping me. It's cool."

Himawari didn't say anything.

"I get it. You guys want to spend time with your dad. I know how you feel."

"How?" Himawari asked. "Your dad set aside the whole day just for you."

"The whole day for me. Not with me," Hoshi explained. "Father was too busy meeting with the chefs and decorators and setting everything up for the party. He hardly spent any time with me."

"Oh."

"It's ok. I'm used to it. Father has to rule this whole land and all its people. A lot of the food you ate was imported from other lands Father does business with." Hoshi looked down. "He's always so busy. And now that I'm officially of age, I have to start studying to do what he does. That's part of what makes this birthday so special. Why the whole town is invited and why he sent for your family to take part. My father and your father are friends, I'm told."

Though they were friends, Naruto still could not be here in person. Therefore, she and Boruto shouldn't take this so personally. It wasn't really a question of highest priority.

Hoshi looked down at her with a small sympathetic grin. "Well, at least your father's trying. Mine can't be in two places at once. At least yours came. I know it's not the same, but at least it's something."

Himawari looked up at Hoshi who smiled at her and gave her a small pat on the shoulder.

"Enjoy the rest of the party."

She watched the prince walk off and mingle with the other guests. She stood, soaking in what the prince had said.

At least her father could be in two places at once.

* * *

"Two places at once…" Himawari repeated to herself as she wandered the hallways. "Two places at once."

No longer in the mood to party, she left the ballroom to escape the noise. The hallways provided plenty of room for her to wander aimlessly.

She kept thinking about what the prince had said.

Just like them, the prince wanted to spend more time with his father, but they were too busy taking care of everyone.

Naruto was spread pretty thin as it was. She could only imagine everything the Hokage had to do on a daily basis.

Himawari was more mature than her brother in that sense. While sad that she couldn't spend more time with her parent, she accepted it, understanding that he had a lot of work to do. She knew he wanted to spend time with them. Why else would he send a clone in his place? Clearly he wanted to be there for them.

Himawari wandered outside where other party-goers stood chatting and catching a breath of fresh air. She wandered away from them so she wouldn't crowd them. She walked across the open yard to the gate, thinking.

The prince was right. Unlike his father, theirs could be in two places at once. In that sense, they were pretty lucky by comparison.

Hoshi must have been pretty lonely. He had a mother, but she could never replace what only a father could provide.

She knew why Boruto was so upset, but he was taking it more to heart than she was. She focused instead on what a good time she had with the clone, thinking it was their real father. Once she discovered the truth, sure she was upset, but she was still happy for the time she spent with him. She didn't consider it fake. Whatever the clone had experienced, so did their real father.

Of course, it wasn't the same, but it was good enough.

Did it have to be good enough? Did they really have to settle?

It wasn't exactly settling. She still had fun. She danced with her brother. That wasn't fake.

Were they settling?

Naruto was very busy. She understood that. Why couldn't Boruto? Why did he have to take it so personally? Couldn't he accept it the way she did? Was she in the wrong for doing that? Should she be angry at Naruto? Should she take it out on him the way her brother did?

Was it wrong?

No. Naruto was trying. He was doing what he could for them. He could have called off the whole trip. She didn't want that. She was happy he didn't call it off. She was glad she came. That was something.

Himawari looked around.

No longer lost in thought, she was able to take in her surroundings.

She was no longer on the palace grounds. She had wandered through the town and into the forest without realizing it.

"I'm sure I'm not lost. I went in a straight line, didn't I?"

She wasn't sure, but she could have sworn all she had to do was walk back in a straight line. That was the way she came, right?

She didn't have to go back right away, did she? Why not wander the forest for a little bit? What was the harm?

Himawari decided to wander around the forest for a little while before heading back. The forest was pretty interesting. She never traveled around in the dark. It was like a different world when the sun went down.

Was it really that late? She didn't realize it was nightfall. The party started just before sunset. Time flew by so fast.

She climbed on a log and walked across it and jumped onto a large stone. She twirled a stick in her hand and dropped it on the ground. She found a berry bush and looked at the small red berries growing on it. She left them alone, not knowing if they were safe to eat or not. She swung from a low tree branch and landed on the ground.

Noticing that her shiny dress shoes were starting to get dirty, she thought about turning back.

Looking around she realized she had wandered farther than she intended. Even more troubling, she hadn't traveled in a straight line. She wasn't sure which way to go.

A rustling sound caused her to jump.

Suddenly this forest seemed a little scarier than before. She wanted to turn back and get inside.

She started walking with her hands cupped to her chest. She crept along slowly.

A twig snapped and she flinched. She picked up the pace.

More rustling.

She started running.

She could see light coming from between the trees. That must have been the palace. She ran towards the beacon as fast as she could.

She heard something behind her and whimpered fearfully.

Something moved alongside her.

She gasped and pushed her way through the trees. As soon as she saw grass, she bolted.

She made it through the forest and smelled the night air. The forest made her feel trapped, but now she was out in the open. She continued running until she reached the gate. She ran up to the open gate and, grabbing the bar with her left hand, swung herself inside.

She planted her back against the wall, panting. Then she carefully peered around the corner.

There was the forest.

She gasped, seeing something between the trees.

A pair of eyes were watching her.

They stared at each other for a few seconds.

The eyes blinked and turned away.

She blinked as well, noticing something else.

Fur. And a bushy tail.

It looked so small.

It wasn't a bear or anything big enough to eat her in one bite.

Perhaps it was a dog.

Had she been running from a dog?

What a silly thing, she thought. To run from a little dog. It wasn't even growling when she ran from it. She didn't know what she was running from.

She felt silly.

Then a new idea came to mind. If it was a dog, then maybe…

Himawari went back inside the palace. She went to the ballroom and over to one of the many food tables. She looked around for something that was easy to carry.

There were meat dishes on the table but none of it was easily transported. Most of it had bones. If it was a dog, she knew not to give it something with bones in it. She saw some spiced meats without bones but a dog might not be fond of spices.

The only thing left were bowls of fruit. Apples, bananas, strawberries. She wasn't sure if a dog would eat this stuff but it was better than nothing.

She glanced around to make sure no one was watching and picked a peach off the table and held it in her hand. She walked away from the guests, hoping no one would think it was odd of her to carry a peach outside. Plenty of people took from this table and didn't eat right away. She hoped they would think she was one of those people.

She left the ballroom without being noticed. No one cared what she was up to. She left the palace without being stopped by anyone. She stopped at the gate and looked around. The forest was still there, but there were no eyes looking at her.

Taking a deep breath, she went back into the forest.

It wasn't as scary this time. Not if there was a cute animal to play with. She wandered deeper into the forest and didn't stop until she heard a noise.

Rustling.

She stopped and stood still, listening.

The rustling continued. It moved from her right to directly in front of her then stopped.

Nothing.

She looked down at the peach in her hand and rolled it into the shadows. She heard the peach roll across the dead leaves and stop.

The rustling was back.

Chomping.

Something was eating the peach.

Then there was quiet.

Himawari bent down, hoping the animal would come forward, seeking food.

Instead she heard rustling above her. Something was in the tree.

Dogs couldn't climb trees, could they?

She stood up, trying to catch a glimpse of whatever had gone into the tree.

As she stood, something else caught her attention.

A large beast came lumbering out of the forest and growled at her. It was as big as a full-grown bear but looked even nastier. She had no idea what creature this was but it was clearly dangerous.

Himawari backed up into a tree trunk and stood frozen.

The beast came closer.

On instinct, her Byakugan activated.

As soon as it did, the creature was gone.

"Huh?" She turned off her ability and the creature was back. She turned it on again and the creature was gone. "It's not real. It's an illusion."

Knowing this, she glanced into the trees, looking for the caster.

She saw a small form sitting crouched on a branch above her. It didn't look human.

"I'm not scared," she said aloud. "I know you're there. And I know this is an illusion."

The creature disappeared.

The rustling shifted from branch to branch. Then it stopped.

Himawari showed no fear. Just curiosity. She wanted to know what it was.

"Hello?" she called.

To her surprise, someone answered.

"Hello."

* * *

Who could it be in the dark?

Please review! ^-^


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

Himawari stood still, staring straight ahead where the voice had come.

She could have sworn it was an animal. Yet the voice she heard was human. It spoke words. No animal could do that. Unless it was a ninja animal. It was rare, but she knew some animals could speak. If they were powerful enough.

This was no ordinary animal.

"What's your name?" she asked.

The voice did not answer.

"I'm Himawari. What's your name?"

She waited for an answer.

There was no movement.

"I'm not going to hurt you." Himawari crouched down to show that she wasn't a threat. "Did you like the food I gave you? Do you like peaches?"

She heard rustling.

"I can get you more if you want. Are you hungry? There's a party going on at the palace. There's lots of food. I'm sure I can find something you'd like. What do you want to eat? I can get it for you."

No one answered her.

"Are you mad at me? Did I do something wrong?"

"No."

She got an answer. It wasn't much, but she was happy to have heard it.

At least now she knew this creature wasn't offended.

"Then why won't you tell me your name?"

"I've never spoken with a human before," said the male voice. "I didn't think you would be like me."

"What do you mean?"

"Speak in words that can be understood and carry on a conversation," came the voice, clarifying what it meant by 'speaking' with a human. "I have never been this close to a human before, either. I've only seen a couple at a distance. They never go into the forest."

"Why not?"

"I'm not sure. They just don't."

"Well, I'm here."

More rustling. The creature was moving again.

"Can you please tell me your name?" she asked again. "I told you mine."

The rustling stopped and the voice came from her right.

"Koeda," he said. "My name is Koeda."

"Koeda. That's a nice name." She giggled. "It sounds like twig."

"It is." The voice chuckled. "You sound like a flower. Your name is like that of a sunny flower."

"It is," she giggled.

This creature was nice. She liked him already.

"Did you want more food? I can get it for you."

"I'm alright. Thank you."

Himawari wanted to learn more about him. "Do you live here alone?"

"No. My friends are in the forest, too. So is my pack."

"Your pack?"

"Yes. The adults are up on the mountain. My friends and I play up there, too. But the adults want us to learn to hunt down here where there's food. My hunting skills are good. I'm really fast."

Himawari asked her next question. "What are you? Can you come out and show me what you look like?"

Koeda hesitated.

"I promise I won't hurt you." Himawari smiled. "I want to be friends."

"Friends?"

"Yeah!"

Koeda hesitated again. "I've never shown myself to a human before."

"It's ok. I won't be scared."

"I'm not worried about that."

"Then what are you worried about?"

"… I'm not sure." Koeda shifted. "I've just never shown myself."

Himawari's legs were starting to hurt from crouching for so long. She wanted to know what Koeda looked like.

"Please?" she asked him.

Koeda sighed. "Ok."

Himawari waited. She heard him moving slowly behind a bush. The rustling stopped and she saw a shadow.

Then a paw.

Slowly, Koeda came out and stood in front of her.

He was a fox. A small red fox.

"Well?" he asked her, his lower jaw moving up and down to form his words. "What do you think?"

"You're cute," she told him with a smile.

"I've never been called that before."

"Can I pet you?" she asked him. "I want to feel your fur."

Koeda stepped forward. He moved slowly until he was right in front of her and lowered his head.

She reached out and stroked the top of his head. It felt no different from petting a small dog. She scratched behind his ears and moved her hand down the back of his neck to his spine. His fur was much softer on his back.

Koeda walked across her shoes and brushed himself against her legs.

"You like that?"

He nodded. "A human has never touched me before. It's nice."

"So tell me about your family. Do you have any siblings?"

"Yes. I have a couple. A sister and a brother. Yuki and Moyashi."

"Are they hunting?"

"I'm not sure what they're doing."

"Have they ever met a human before?"

"I don't think so." Koeda raised his head. "Not many of us have."

"None of you have ever met a human being?"

"The adults have. They're friends with one. He used to hunt and play with them. I've heard stories."

"But you've never met this human?"

He shook his head. "Nope."

"Oh."

Koeda lifted his head. "You seem nice. Did you want to meet my friends?"

"Could I?" she asked excitedly.

"I suppose you could. We don't attack humans. So we won't bite you."

"Thanks. But I thought you said you weren't sure where they were or what they were doing."

"I can find them. If you don't mind following me into the forest a little further."

"Ok, I can do that."

Koeda led Himawari deeper into the forest to find his friends.

Now that she had been out in the dark for a while, her eyes had adjusted, making it easier for her to follow after him as he climbed over logs and large rocks.

"I've never met a talking fox before," she said.

"Really? You didn't seem all that surprised. I figured a human would scream if they met a talking anything."

"Where I come from, there are animals who can talk, but only if they're really strong. Like ninja beasts."

"Ninja, huh?" Koeda climbed onto a low branch and walked to the end and jumped down. "The human who came here a while ago was a ninja."

"The same one who's friends with the adults?"

"Same one."

"Are you a ninja animal?" she asked him. "You don't look like one, but you can talk."

"No. I'm a kitsune. All kitsune can talk."

"Really? Why's that?"

"Well, why do humans talk?"

Himawari shrugged. "Not sure. But we can."

"Us, too."

Koeda stopped and sniffed the air. He took Himawari down a different path.

"I have to say, for a human, you're pretty strong, too." He climbed onto another branch to be at eye level with her. "I've never seen a human who could see through an illusion like that. Or know exactly where I was."

"I thought you didn't meet many humans."

"I don't. There were some bad humans who tried to sneak into the town and we kitsune had to stop them. My friends and I cast an illusion on this one human about a month ago maybe who tried to sneak into the town. He couldn't see through the illusion so he got scared. One of the adults came by and told us that we were going overboard and needed to leave. He would send the human on its way."

"Why do you cast illusions like that?"

"To keep the town safe. That's our job," Koeda explained. "According to the rules, the king watches over things in the town and we watch over things in the mountain. Together, we keep the land safe so no one has to worry."

"Wow, that's very nice of you."

"Yeah, but kitsune aren't allowed in the town so it's hard to protect the village from threats if it's already in the town. That's also why I haven't really seen many humans. Kitsune don't go into the village."

"Why aren't kitsune allowed?"

"It's a long story. But the adults say it's safer this way. Humans are afraid we'll tear up their crops and they'll come after us with weapons. The adults said that's what happened in the past and that's how a lot of kitsune ended up either hurt or killed. So for our protection, we stay in the mountain. That's how it works."

"I'm sorry to hear that. But I promise that I won't hurt you or any kitsune."

"Thanks for that. You seem like a nice human so I believe you."

After they walked a little further, Himawari asked another question.

"How can you cast illusions anyway?"

"Oh, that's our fox fire. It's pretty great."

"Fox fire?"

"Yeah." Koeda stopped walking. "Wanna see?"

"Uh-huh."

Koeda seemed proud to show it off. He must have been a bit of an attention-seeker.

"Ok. Check this out."

Koeda wagged his tail and slapped it against the ground, causing blue flames to rise into the air. The flames danced and began to take shape. They turned into a clone of Himawari. The clone stood in front of her and smiled.

"Wow! It's just like a Shadow Clone Jutsu," she commented.

Unlike an actual shadow clone, this image was just an image. It did not move unless Koeda instructed it to and her hand passed right through it when she tried to touch it.

"Unless I concentrate, the illusion won't do much. The more kitsune there are, the more convincing our illusions can be. Like the illusion we cast on that one human before. He was so scared."

"So the clone won't do anything unless you tell it to?"

"Well, I have to make it do whatever it does. It doesn't think and it's not solid," he explained. "If I get distracted, it will go away. Or if I'm too weak to keep it up. Fox fire does require energy. Think of it like a puppet on strings. If I'm not pulling the strings, it won't do anything."

Himawari's hand passed through the image over and over again, playing with it. Then the image faded away.

"That's pretty cool," she commented. "Can you make anything appear?"

"Pretty much. It's only limited by our imaginations and our strength. That's why some kitsune are better at it than others."

"Illusions are kind of like drawing a picture, isn't it?" Himawari said with a giggle.

"Well, the better you get and the stronger you get, the more convincing the illusion becomes. Not only can we make images, we can create sounds, as well." Koeda ran in front of Himawari and pointed at a branch with his nose. "I can make that tree talk if I wanted. And give it a face, too. Or I can make that branch turn into a hissing snake. You'll never be able to tell the difference."

"Even though I know a tree branch can't do that?" she said almost rhetorically.

She was surprised by his answer.

"Kitsune illusions can be so convincing that a human wouldn't be able to tell the difference from illusion and reality. If enough strong kitsune get together, we can create a whole other dimension that humans will occupy and not think twice of."

Himawari was impressed. "You're that strong?"

"Well, I'm not. Yet. But some day if I work hard, I will be." Koeda sat on the ground. "See, I only have one tail. You can tell how powerful a kitsune is by the number of tails they have. The number also limits our abilities. There are some things I can't do until I get my second tail."

"Such as?"

"It's called transformation," said Koeda. "It allows us to turn ourselves into human beings. More specifically, assume the form of an already existing human."

"Like a disguise?"

"Exactly."

Himawari smiled at the thought.

"What's funny?" asked Koeda.

"Your abilities sound a lot like ninja abilities," she told him. "My family can do those things."

"Your family can use fox fire?"

"No, no," she laughed. "We're not foxes."

"Kitsune," corrected Koeda. "But then how can humans do such things?"

"Well, it isn't fox fire. It's called jutsu," explained Himawari. "I came from a ninja village. In my village, we use things called jutsu to create clones of ourselves and to transform into other people if we wanted to."

Koeda was fascinated. "Wow. So humans do have special powers." He frowned. "But that doesn't make sense. I've never seen a human do such things before. I'm told they can't."

"Well, normal humans can't. Only ninja," she told him. "In my village, there are lots of ninja would can do those things. Not all of them can, though. And not everyone in the village is a ninja."

"A ninja village, you say… That would explain it. Normal humans can't but ninja humans can. Makes sense." Koeda looked her over. "The fact that you can see through my illusions… Does that mean that you are a ninja?"

"Well, sort of." She was training to be a ninja. She could use Gentle Fist already, but she didn't have a headband to prove that she was an actual ninja. Because of this, she wasn't sure how to answer him. "My brother and parents are full-fledged ninja. They have the headbands to prove it."

"What are headbands?"

"They're a band you wear on your forehead as a protector that shows you're a true ninja. Taught and graduated and everything. There are exams you have to take. Some ninja wear the bands on other parts of their body, like their arms and waist."

"These bands are simply to show your strength like a kitsune and its tails?"

"I guess so." She hadn't really thought about it that way. "My brother has one, but I don't think he's wearing it now… Not at the party because he's not on duty."

"Are the bands to show if someone is a ninja or not because a lot of humans look alike?"

She nodded. "Uh-huh. That's a good way to put it. They also show what ninja village you're from."

"How can you tell that?"

"It's from the symbol on the headband. You're basically wearing the mark of your village."

"Oh, I see."

"Who are you talking to?" asked a voice. "Koeda, who is that?"

Koeda looked up with a smile. "My friends!"

Himawari looked up as well. "Where? In the trees?"

Koeda stood up and fixed his gaze on one of the branches. "You guys can come down. I made a friend. She says she's like us. She can cast illusions, too."

"But that's a human. We're not supposed to talk to them."

"We're not supposed to go into the town. No one said we couldn't talk to them. Not exactly."

"What if the human is dangerous? Shouldn't you be hiding yourself?"

Koeda shook his head. "No. She's fine. Promise."

Another voice entered into the conversation. "How can you be sure?"

"We talked. She's friendly. She also saw through my illusion so I know she's like us."

Himawari was confused. "Why do you say that?"

"Because kitsune can see through illusions cast by other kitsune," he told her. "The fact that you can do that either means you're really strong or you're like us. Since you said you can also cast illusions and use transformation, I think it's because you're like us."

"Like a kitsune?" Himawari looked down at herself in astonishment.

She couldn't really be a kitsune, could she? No. This fox must have been mistaken. He was ignorant of a lot of things relating to humans so he must have been making an assumption. An incorrect one.

Then again, she and her brother did have whiskers on their faces. Just like their father only not as apparent. Could that have meant something?

"If she can cast illusions, then prove it," said one of the voices. It sounded female. "I want to see it for myself."

Koeda turned around. "Well?"

"Well, what?"

"Show them what you can do," he told her. "You said you could do it."

"Uh…" Himawari didn't like being put on the spot like this.

"Please?"

"Maybe she lied," said another voice. "I've never seen a human use either technique before."

"No human can that I've ever seen."

"This one can!" insisted Koeda. "I know it. Please, Himawari? Please show them? It doesn't have to be much."

"She probably saw through your illusions because they weren't good enough. You're still a long way away."

"Am not! And how would you know? You can see through illusions anyway. Whether they're good or bad wouldn't matter to your eyes."

Himawari took a deep breath. "Ok. I'll show you something. It's simple. I practiced with my brother."

Koeda watched eagerly. The other kitsune weren't visible but she could sense them nearby, watching.

Himawari performed a hand sign. "Transform!"

Her body took on the form of her brother. Since she had practiced this technique at home with him, her brother's image was dressed in his casual clothing. She struck a couple of poses before ending the jutsu.

"Ta-da!" she cried out with her hands in the air. She couldn't see herself in that form, otherwise she would have noticed all the imperfections, reflecting her lack of training, but it was enough to impress the kitsune.

"Wow!"

The kitsune all came leaping out of the tree branches and gathered around her excitedly.

"I've never seen a human do that before."

"That was amazing. Very convincing."

"That human looked a little familiar to me…"

"How can a human use such a thing? Is she part kitsune?"

"Nope," said Koeda. "It's because she's a ninja. She says that ninjas can use those techniques just like kitsune. That's what she told me."

"So she's no ordinary human."

Himawari was flattered. She never got this much attention before. And never from so any cute animals! To her, they were like talking stuffed animals. She wanted to be friends with each and every one of them.

The next thing she knew, she and the whole group were exploring the forest. It was a race with no winners. They all took off and expected to be followed. Anyone who did tried their best to keep up and rush ahead of the leaders.

She followed them.

At first, she was way behind. Then she started to pick up the pace and ran in line with the kitsune trailing behind. Soon, she was in the midst of the group, surrounded by kitsune.

Now that she was able to keep up, the group took her down different paths. They jumped over fallen trees and branches. She followed suet, leaping over anything in her path. They jumped off large rocks and into the trees. Himawari jumped, but swung from the branches with her hands rather than leap into them on all fours as they were doing.

They took her all over the forest. From the wide spaces between the trees to the dense vegetation, the marshy area where they had to balance on fallen trees and stones to the river twisting around the mountain. They stopped for a drink while she admired the waterfall crashing down. The roar made it difficult for her to hear their directions. Soon she found herself in yet another game of chase.

"What do you think?" Koeda asked her as they ran.

"This forest is fantastic!" she cried out. "I've never done this before. This is so much fun!"

It truly was.

The kitsune were so nimble, they were able to run and leap with such ease while she was left struggling to mimic their actions. Soon, she got the hang of it and was able to keep up a lot better than before. She even tried mimicking them a little further by running on all fours. She was a lot slower and it was hard to see where she was going while staying balanced in such and unnatural position. She quickly gave up and simply ran on two legs as she had been doing.

After running and playing games of chase and hide-and-seek, the kitsune stopped by the river again for another break.

Himawari sat on a rock as they each showed off their abilities. She showed off a little of her power as well, using her Byakugan to see through their illusions and close in on their true locations. She impressed each and every one of them. They tried to fool her, but no matter what they tried, she could tell where they were.

"Bet you never lost a game of hide-and-seek, am I right?" asked one of the kitsune.

"I don't really use it while playing games because other people can't do that so it would be like cheating," said Himawari.

"How is it cheating if it is your natural ability?" asked another kitsune. "It's like saying you cannot enter a race because you are fast. That's the point."

"Or that you cannot race because you can run. It makes no sense."

Himawari could see now that these kitsune thought differently than she did on certain topics. She understood their reasoning, but she still thought of it as cheating.

"So what else do you guys do for fun?" she asked, changing the subject.

"We hunt!" said one of them proudly.

"It can be fun, but it's necessity more than anything," said another. "I don't consider it fun like the games we play."

"We play tag and race and play hide-and-seek. We also play fight, too. We challenge each other to a match to see who's stronger."

"We wrestle, too. It's fun."

"What do humans do for fun?" asked another.

"Oh. Um…" Himawari thought about it. "We do a lot of the same things. We also play games like chase and tag and hide-and-seek. We also play ninja."

"How can you play ninja if you are a ninja?"

"The younger kids do that. They haven't become true ninja yet. You have to be trained first."

"That sounds confusing."

"Maybe they're playing an anticipation game. Like playing two-tails when we only have one tail."

"Ohh! I guess so."

Himawari giggled. These kitsune sure had a different way of thinking. Even their comparisons were different. At least from human perspective.

"I already know Koeda's name," said Himawari. "But what are all your names?"

"That's Kawa, that's Misuto, over there is Mizumi, and that's Suzu, and there's Hoseki and that's Hashirimasu." Koeda pointed to each kitsune with his paw. "And those are my siblings, Yuki and Moyashi."

Himawari was finally able to tally them up now that they were all sitting still. "… six, seven, eight. And Koeda makes nine."

"Yup. There are nine of us."

"Nine kitsune. Wow… And this isn't even the whole group, is it?" Himawari asked, looking at Koeda. "There are adult foxes, too. Adult kitsune."

He nodded. "That's right. They're at the top of the mountain."

"Are there a bunch like you guys?"

"Yup. A whole bunch."

"Wow." Himawari imagined a whole herd of foxes the size of large dogs on top of the mountain. If these kitsune were considered children, then the adults must have been huge! Maybe even bigger than dogs. Could they have been the size of bears?

These young kitsune were roughly the size of small dogs, so having adults the size of bears might have been an accurate assumption.

"Is there any way for me to meet an adult kitsune?"

The young ones looked at each other.

"Well…"

"I don't know."

Himawari gave them a sad look. "They won't like me?"

"It's just that… Most of them avoid humans. Not just because of the rules, but out of fear."

"And if Leader saw her, he'll probably make her leave," said another.

"True, true."

"But…" Himawari was disappointed at not being able to see an adult kitsune. "I thought if you guys saw I was ok, then an adult would, too. So an adult would be afraid of me even if I'm nice? And even if I were to try to show them that I was friendly… Would they hide from me before I got the chance? Or would they attack me?"

"Kitsune don't attack humans. Leader's rules."

"And the rules of the king, remember."

"We have no reason to attack humans anyway."

"Yeah, they bring us food and we leave them alone."

Himawari looked around. "Then what would happen if I were to try to show an adult that I was friendly?"

They shrugged. "Dunno."

She sighed. "Even if I'm friendly… they still won't like me. Even if I like you guys."

The kitsune looked at each other.

Hoseki stood up. "Follow me. I want to show you something."

Himawari stood and followed. Koeda came with her while the others stayed behind.

Hoseki brought Himawari to the other side of the river and closer to the mountain. He stopped near the mountain side and stood next to what appeared to be a pile of sticks.

As she got closer, Himawari realized that they were sticks, but they were deliberately made and driven into the ground. The sticks were tied together to form crosses. There were two of them in total. Both stood behind two mounds of dirt. One mound was larger than the other.

They were graves.

The sticks acted as the grave markers. From the look of things, the graves had been there for a while. The sticks had moss growing on them and the mounds of dirt did not look fresh at all. There was very little grass in this area as it was so the graves were not overgrown. Still, she could tell they were old.

"These are our friends," explained Hoseki. "That's what the elders tell us. One belongs to a kitsune, brother to two of the elders. The other is a horse. We were told that he was a good friend to them, so he was placed here so he could be close to us."

"When I asked one of the adults about it," said Koeda, "they told me that they considered the horse to be one of us. Not because of any abilities, but because he cared so much for our kind and would do anything to help us in our time of need. I'm told he lost his life doing just that."

"Both were killed by humans," Hoseki said abruptly. "The adults told us that. They were killed when they entered the town."

Himawari gave a small gasp. Learning this made her feel as if she should be the one apologizing, even though she had nothing to do with it. It almost made her ashamed to be a human.

Two graves, and humans were the cause.

"The elders told us this when we expressed an interest in going into the town to explore. When we were old enough to journey down the mountain, we passed these by many times. We wondered what they were but didn't mention them at first. Then we asked and got our answer. The elders told us that they were the graves of our friends. However, they did not tell us how they died until we tried to enter the town."

Hoseki lowered his head.

"Sometimes we wondered if they were just legends to keep us from going into the town. But the elders all seemed to share the same expression of fear and sadness. So we took it as truth."

Himawari looked down at Koeda. "I understand why I can't meet the adults. They have good reason to avoid humans if what you said is true."

"Yeah, but you're nice," said Koeda. "All this time, we were told to avoid humans because they could hurt us. We were shown these graves as proof. And yet, we're given mixed messages."

"How so?"

"For starters, you're nice, which contradicts what the elders were saying. And also, we were told that they had befriended a human in the past who is still considered a member of our group." Koeda sighed. "It makes no sense to me. It's very confusing."

"That's part of the reason why we're not sure if you can meet the elders or not." Hoseki shrugged. "Even I'm not sure how they would react. I don't get how humans can be frightening and friendly at the same time. How can they elders be friends with one and void so many others? Humans are dangerous yet we help protect them."

Himawari was confused as well.

"Maybe it's because some humans are scary and others aren't," she said. "So to protect you guys from the bad ones, the grown-ups told you to avoid humans altogether. Just in case you accidentally ran into a bad one. They're trying to keep you safe."

They looked surprised at such logic.

"You think so?"

"Well, my parents told me not to talk to strangers," she explained. "But when I need help, they tell me to ask people who are nearby. And when people knock on the door and ask to talk to one of them."

They seemed to understand to some extent.

"I see. So it isn't all humans. Just as I thought. Meeting you confirmed that."

"We also weren't told exactly how those two died. Just that they were both killed in town."

Himawari nodded. "There must be more to the story. They probably didn't tell you all of it just to keep things simple."

"That makes sense."

They brought her back to the other side of the river to where the others were still waiting. Hoseki shared Himawari's wisdom with the others and they seemed to agree.

"Still, there are rules. The adults told us not to go into the town. The leader said not to and we have to follow his orders. But sometimes he talks to the king. He also said that the king arranged it so we can't enter the town and the humans can't come in here. At least they shouldn't."

Himawari could see how the kitsune could get confused over certain issues. The rules alone left her feeling confused. The more she listened, the more questions she had.

"You're saying that your leader meets with the king? How can he if kitsune are supposed to avoid humans?"

"Dunno exactly," said Yuki. "We just know that they arrange things."

"But then humans can't be dangerous if he meets with them," said another female. Mizumi looked around at the other foxes. "But there are ones who are dangerous. I'm confused."

"It's like Himawari said. There are good ones and bad ones. The elders probably lumped them all together into bad ones in order to protect us."

"But that isn't fair. Not if it keeps us from the good humans."

The kitsune were too young to understand certain issues and their logic was limited. They were too inexperienced. The topic at hand was already far too advanced for them to comprehend. It left them feeling confused and unsure.

Himawari couldn't blame them. The concepts were by no means simple. Even she had a hard time understanding it. However, she understood most of it better than they did.

The kitsune began to debate; which was how Himawari came to learn something else.

Apparently, the kitsune were given offerings from the humans in town. They left scraps of food at the edge of the forest for the kitsune to take. According to the young foxes, this was in accordance with the deal that had been made long ago. So long as the kitsune remained out of the town, the humans would provide food for them.

However, this suggested that should the offerings stop, the kitsune were then inclined to enter the town. They would have just reason for doing so from the sound of things.

"Too bad, really," said Kawa. "I would like very much to enter a human town. It seems like fun."

"I'd like to play with a human," said Moyashi. "Seems like it would be fun. With a friendly one, at least."

"A human town seems like a lot of fun. Oh, well. At least we got to meet an actual human and show her around our place."

"Yeah, that was nice."

"A welcomed change."

Hoseki leaned in close. "But we can't tell the elders. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

"Yeah. This way we can play together again sometime," added Suzu, the youngest of the group.

The kitsune started to head back towards the mountain.

"Where's everyone going?" asked Himawari.

"Back to the top of the mountain. We don't want the adults looking for us."

"Yeah, they might find you and we can't have that."

Himawari understood. "Ok." She looked at the dark sky overhead. It was hard to tell through the trees, but she knew it was very late. "I should head back before my brother tries looking for me."

Koeda stood up. "I'll walk you back."

"Great." Himawari turned to the rest of the foxes. "It was nice meeting you guys."

The kitsune returned to say good-bye. Himawari bent down to pet them while they nuzzled their faces against her body. It was like being brushed with warm stuffed animals.

Himawari stood and waved to everyone as they left. Then she turned and followed Koeda out of the forest.

* * *

What happens next?

Please review! ^-^


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

"That was so much fun," Himawari said as they walked. "I'd love to do it again."

"Yeah, but I thought you had to go home to another place after tonight," said Koeda.

"Yeah…" Himawari sighed sadly. "Too bad."

"We never get to play with humans. And you were so much fun. I can only imagine what it would be like to play with a bunch of others. Showing off our fox fire and other tricks."

"I bet they'd love it. I'm sure the kids in my village would. I thought it was pretty cool."

"It was nice of you to explain what ninja were to my friends. After you already explained it to me."

"It was fine. I had fun." Himawari looked around at the trees. "Didn't you say the human who came here a long time ago was a ninja, too?"

"Uh-huh. He was friends with the leader and the other elders."

"I wonder who it was…"

"Can't you tell from the head band stuff?" Koeda asked. "You said it's the mark of your village." He looked away. "But I guess you can't tell that yet, because you don't have a headband thing. You said you haven't earned it yet."

"But I know what the symbol is." Himawari picked up a stick. "I can draw it for you."

She took the end of the stick and started to draw in the dirt. She made a little line and turned the stick so it went away from the line and around and drew a little swirl in the center and attached a triangle to it, finishing her work. When she was done, it looked like a leaf.

"There. That's the symbol."

Koeda sniffed the dirt. "That's the mark of your village?"

"Yup. The mark of the Leaf Village."

Koeda looked up. "The ninja who befriended the elders came from the Leaf Village."

"They did?" Himawari said excitedly. "Oh, wow, maybe I know them. Who was it? Do you remember their name?"

"Yeah," said Koeda. "His name was Naruto."

Himawari gasped. "Naruto Uzumaki?"

"Yeah."

"That's my dad's name!" she almost screamed. "My daddy's the one who came here and became their friends! It's my daddy!"

"Your father was the ninja who came here? You're Naruto's child?" Koeda exclaimed.

"Yeah!" Himawari jumped up and down. "Yeah! Your family met my daddy! He knows you guys! They're friends!"

"That's amazing!" Koeda's smile was wide and his eyes were huge. "Oh, wow! That's incredible! And to think I actually met his child. Both generations have met each other."

"So cool!"

They celebrated this discovery by running around in circles and jumping.

When they had both calmed down, everything had sunken in.

"My daddy knows you guys…" Himawari crouched on the ground, resting her tired body. "Wow."

"It's not just a story anymore," said Koeda. "The fabled Naruto is not just a story anymore. I met his child. You're his pup. Which makes everything real."

Koeda recited the tales one after another for Himawari to hear. Everything from him coming to this land long ago and befriending the kitsune. Helping them stop a powerful enemy and saving the prince who had since become king. Him arriving a second time to help them drive out a new threat and how they in turn helped him save his homeland. How both sides helped each other. How Naruto was the one who helped inspire their leader to become the leader when he was so reluctant.

Himawari smiled when he was through. "My daddy's amazing…" She knew there was a reason why he became Hokage. He was strong in his younger years and he was strong now. He had done so much. She was proud to be his daughter.

"I'd love to see that village with my own eyes," said Koeda. "I heard from the elders that a couple of them have been there before. The leader was one of them. They had both seen the Leaf Village. And Naruto is still there?"

"Yeah. He's the village leader. We call the leader the Hokage. That's my dad."

"Wow. So both our leaders were good friends and still are to this day. That is so cool."

"It really is."

Koeda sighed. "I'm jealous. The elders speak of Naruto so highly but I've never seen him. And some of them have even been to the Leaf Village and none of us have. I'm a little disappointed."

Koeda sighed again.

"I would love to see it with my own eyes. To see him."

Himawari turned her head and saw the look of longing on Koeda's face. She could tell that it was very important for him to see the Leaf Village.

It was his dream.

Without him having to say it out loud, she knew what he was thinking. She knew he thought it was impossible, because kitsune could not enter a human town.

However, Naruto had come into the forest and met with the kitsune. The kitsune even left the mountain to travel all the way to the Leaf Village. They even visited the king who did not stray from his palace. Therefore, there were ways in which a kitsune could enter a human town. Apparently, the rules weren't set in stone. The adults must have simply told the young kitsune not to for the sole reason of keeping them safe. The adults were simply being worried parents.

And the Leaf Village wasn't the human town they were forbidden to enter.

Himawari swiveled around to face Koeda. "Want to come home with me?" she asked him.

Koeda looked up. "Huh?"

"Would you like to come to the Leaf Village with me? I can take you there."

He looked excited. "You can? You will?"

"Well, your rules say that you can't enter this human town. So that means you can enter a different one. And my place isn't a human town. It's a ninja village."

Koeda's eyes lit up. "You're right! There's no rules against that."

Himawari nodded with a big smile on her face. "Exactly. If you really want to see it, I can bring you home with me and show you the Leaf Village."

Koeda nodded up and down. "Yeah, yeah!" He jumped. "Let's make plans. Right away. I really want to do this."

"Great."

Himawari and Koeda set to work arranging plans for him to come home with her.

If kitsune were not allowed into the human town, then she had to sneak him out in some clever way. She would either have to return to the forest and smuggle him in her bag, or she would have to meet him in the forest just outside the town. The forest did loop around the town. She could meet him by the side of the road. Near the wooden sign they passed, perhaps.

But what about her brother? Would he let her take a fox home with them? He might protest. He might even try to force her to leave him behind.

She had to keep it a secret from him.

She also couldn't do anything until tomorrow when they left for home. If she brought Koeda with her now, he would technically be in the town. Since Himawari and Boruto were going to spend the night in the palace, Koeda was at high risk of being discovered since she would have to bring him inside.

That settled it. They would meet up tomorrow morning and she would sneak him home with her. No one would be the wiser.

Himawari parted ways with Koeda and hurried back to the palace. She was so excited she could hardly keep the smile off her face. It all seemed like a clever plan.

She ran up the steps of the palace and pulled the large door open. The doors were open before. Now that she had to pull them open herself, she discovered how difficult it was. They were quite heavy. She pulled the door open just enough to squeeze inside and closed it. She walked across the carpeted foyer, up the stairs and to the second level.

The palace was so lively before. Now everything was quiet. She wondered how long she had been gone.

As she entered the ballroom, she shut her eyes tight. After being in the dark forest, the lights of the ballroom were blinding. She opened her eyes slowly and looked at the floor until they adjusted.

Once they had, she looked around the ballroom and noticed that the only people left were the servants. They were clearing off the tables and sweeping the floors. As for the rest of the room, it seemed that they were going to wait until morning to take down all the decorations. The leftover food and mess on the floor was their primary objective for now.

The band and everyone else had left. Himawari did not notice this when she had exited the forest at the edge of the town. The houses were all dark and quiet, just as they had been when she first left the palace to explore. The townspeople attending the party and being in bed were no different so she never noticed if they were there or not.

She was in the forest anyway, far from the town, so even if they were walking home from the party, she would have never seen or heard them.

Himawari looked around for her brother. He couldn't have left without her. He wasn't in the ballroom, so where was he?

She stepped out into the hallway and decided to go to the room the king provided for them. Boruto might have been there. If he wasn't she had no idea where to look.

"Himawari!"

Halfway down the hall, she was stopped by a voice. Before she could turn fully to face them, she felt two arms around her shoulders.

"There you are!" said her brother in an exasperated tone of voice. "I've been looking everywhere for you. When all the guests started to go home, I went back into the ballroom but you weren't there. I've been up and down this stupid palace searching for you."

"Oh. Sorry." She didn't think Boruto would notice she was gone, he was too busy pouting. She was so fixated on the kitsune, she hadn't given it much thought anyway. "I'm sorry, Boruto."

Boruto stepped back, looking Himawari up and down. "What happened to you? Look at your dress. And your shoes."

"Huh?"

She looked down and saw that her shoes were covered in mud and blades of grass. Her stockings had a small hole in them and the hem of her dress was dirty. So were her hands and arms.

She tried to keep herself clean, but running around in a forest with animals in the middle of the night made that almost impossible.

"What happened?" Boruto asked again.

"I… I went for a walk in the woods." She did. "I lost track of time." And she did.

She told Boruto the truth. She just left out the part about the kitsune.

Boruto sighed. "You brought a change of clothes, right?"

"Yeah."

"Ok. I guess it's not all that bad."

Boruto looked down, thinking. He figured Himawari got upset at their father as well and took a walk outside to cool down while he stayed in the corner. Part of him was angry at their father for making her feel this way. Another part was upset at himself for not noticing how she felt and comforting her. Instead, he left her alone.

"I'm sorry," he told her. "Come on. Let's go to bed. We have a long walk ahead of us in the morning."

"Ok." She followed Boruto to their room, keeping quiet about her adventures. No matter how much she wanted to tell him, she had to keep it a secret. Otherwise, it would ruin the surprise.

* * *

Himawari hardly slept that night. She was too excited for morning to come.

She wondered how her father would react, meeting one of the kitsune children. She wondered if he would tell the kitsune all about his adventures. She wondered if he would show the kitsune around as they had done for her.

The next morning, she and her brother were treated to a delicious breakfast with the king and queen and their son. According to Boruto, he and Prince Hoshi talked for a little bit at the party after the clone popped. He didn't go into detail about it.

"Would you two like a cart for your journey?" asked the king. "It's a long walk for just the two of you. I can arrange transportation for you."

"We can walk," insisted Boruto.

"What about your sister?" he asked. "I'm sure a ninja can make the journey no problem, but what about her?"

Boruto hadn't thought of that. He assumed she could keep up with him, but he had to remember that she wasn't a ninja yet. He was far more advanced. On the way here, she hitched a ride on her father's clone for part of the way. They even rode in a wagon on the way to this town.

He had to be considerate of her limitations.

"I guess a ride would be ok for part of it. Not too long, though."

"I understand. I'll arrange everything for you."

Himawari sneaked some food off the table and into her pocket for Koeda. She imaged he would get hungry on their journey.

* * *

When it was time for them to leave, the royal family came to see them off. They all lined up by the front door to say good-bye. There was a carriage waiting for them just outside the palace gate.

This made going into the forest to retrieve Koeda more difficult. Himawari had to come up with some way to get outside without arousing suspicion.

Rather than come up with a complicated excuse, she simply said, "I'll be right back," and went outside.

No one stopped her as she went out the door. Not even the coachman tending to his horses.

She entered the forest and returned to their meeting spot. It looked different in the light, but this was the place.

"Psst!" she called softly. "Koeda. I'm here."

She returned as promised, but she couldn't see him.

Had the adults discovered what they were up to and stopped him? Could kitsune ground their kids like humans did?

Then she heard a familiar rustling sound. Koeda emerged and greeted her with a smile.

"You came."

"I did." Himawari lowered her bag to the ground and opened it. "Hurry, get in."

Now she was thankful she hadn't brought too many things with her for the trip. Only her clothes and hairbrush. Boruto packed everything else. She moved some things aside and she put her shoes in Boruto's bag without him knowing. Because of this, Koeda was just able to fit inside.

"Are you ready?" she asked.

"Yeah." Koeda poked his nose out of the bag. "I'll stay quiet and hidden. Just like we discussed." He stuck his nose back inside the bag.

Himawari zipped most of it shut. She kept it open slightly so Koeda could breathe. With Koeda inside, her bag felt heavier. She estimated he weighed at least a dozen pounds. It wasn't unbearable, but she wouldn't have been able to carry him all the way by herself. Now she was thankful they got a coach to take them part of the way.

She put the bag on her back and hurried out of the forest. On her way out, she picked some flowers growing around a tree.

Boruto stood on the front step, looking around. When he saw his sister running past the gate towards them, he called out to her.

"Where were you?"

She held up the flowers in her hand. She ran up the stairs and handed the flowers over to the royal family. "These are for you." She bowed. "Thank you very much for having us. We had a great time. And thanks for letting us spend the night. And thanks for the carriage ride."

The king and queen chuckled, finding her quite adorable. "You're very welcome."

She waved to them as she went out the door. "Bye. Thanks again."

Boruto watched her raced past him and into the carriage. He made sure that's where she was before he looked away to say his good-byes.

"Thanks for everything. Bye!" He jumped down the stairs and ran to the carriage. He tossed his bag on the floor of the carriage and sat next to his sister.

The royal family waved to them from the front step and the carriage took off. Himawari and Boruto waved one last time then sat back and enjoyed the ride.

Boruto looked out the window at the townspeople looking and waving. He felt like a celebrity. "This is pretty cool, isn't it? Like we're V.I.P. or something. It's cool."

He looked and noticed that Himawari was keeping her bag in the seat next to her.

"Hey, why don't you put that thing on the floor next time mine? Here." Boruto grabbed the strap and started to lift the bag off the seat.

"No!" Himawari put both hands on the bag, keeping it in place. "I want it here."

"Why?"

"I don't want it to get dirty," she claimed.

In truth, she didn't want Boruto to toss the bag concealing Koeda on the ground as roughly as he had to his own bag. She didn't want Koeda to get hurt. Besides, Boruto had a habit of putting his feet on the bags and she didn't want him accidentally kicking or discovering Koeda.

Boruto took his hand off the bag. "Whatever. But your dress and shoes are already in the bag and they're all muddy. What difference would it make?"

"I want it here next to me."

"Ok, fine." Boruto looked back out the window.

The carriage ride was very nice. Both siblings enjoyed themselves. Even though Boruto complained several times about how he could run faster than the pace they were currently going. But even he admitted it was better than walking and it was faster. Not as fast as running, but he already made that quite clear.

The carriage stopped a little more than halfway to the Leaf Village in front of a rest stop for travelers. The coachman climbed down to visit the little shop for some lunch. Boruto got out of the carriage and told his sister to follow. When the coachman returned, Boruto said that they were going to continue on their own.

Himawari pulled the bag onto her back and stood beside her brother as the coach turned around and returned to the town.

"Come on," Boruto told her.

They ate their snacks along the way. Boruto led the way. Himawari tucked the scraps of food from her pocket into her bag for Koeda to eat. He was being so quiet she wasn't sure if he was awake or not. She made sure he had enough air and followed her brother.

It was a long walk, but they managed with little issue. Most of the journey was spent with minimal conversation. Every now and then, Boruto would complain about something. Like the carriage ride and how the royal family was lacking in technology. The prince had never played video games, something that shocked Boruto. He told Hoshi all about it and said if he had known, he would have bought it for his birthday instead.

"Hoshi said it wouldn't have made a difference," said Boruto. "He said that his father wouldn't allow it. It would distract him from his studies or something like that. But what does a prince have to do anyway? What's there to study? You just sit on a throne and tell people what to do. Royalty doesn't have to do any work. That's what servants are for. I don't get it."

"They still have to take care of people in town and stuff," said Himawari.

"Like how? The people can take care of themselves. I just don't see the point of royalty. What do they do?"

"I bet if you were a prince, you'd get to see what it's like and find out for yourself."

Boruto grumbled.

As they were walking, something came out of the woods and stood in their path. It was a wild boar.

"Aw, crap," growled Boruto. "Not one of these again. Himawari stay behind me."

Himawari stood where she was and watched.

Boruto took out a kunai. "Shoo! Shoo!" he told the animal.

The boar did not leave the road and every time Boruto tried to walk around it, the boar would block his path. Himawari waited, but the same thing kept happening no matter what Boruto did.

"I said get!" Boruto slashed the air with his kunai.

The boar charged and headbutted him in the stomach. Boruto tumbled backwards.

"Boruto!" Himawari gasped.

"I'm alright. I'm good." Boruto bounced back and kicked the boar in the face. "Last chance to run before I kick your ass!"

The boar lowered its head and got ready to charge.

Himawari didn't want Boruto to kill it and she didn't want to see him get hurt. She knew Boruto would only hurt it a little. At least, that's what he intended. If the boar put up more of a fight, then he might not have much of a choice.

The boar snorted and scratched the ground with its hoof.

As it prepared to attack, it looked at something behind Boruto and squealed. It turned and ran back into the woods.

Himawari looked over her shoulder and saw a giant beast looming over them with massive teeth. As soon as the boar ran away, the beast disappeared in wisps of blue flame. She looked at her bag and saw Koeda's eye watching her. He quickly tucked himself away.

When she looked back, she saw her brother puffing out his chest with pride. "Ha! It took off scared as I knew it would. It took one look at my knife and ran."

Boruto thought he had been the cause and Himawari wasn't about to correct him. Not if she wanted to keep Koeda a secret.

"Thanks," she said loud enough for either of them to hear.

Boruto smiled at her and reached for her hand. "Come on. We're almost there."

She took his hand and they continued on their way.

When they saw the walls of their home, Boruto let go of her hand. "We're home!" he announced proudly.

Himawari turned her head to see if Koeda was peeking through the opening in her bag. She saw his bronze eye looking at the village gate. The sunlight almost made his eyes look gold. Either way, his eyes were sparkling.

They entered the village and went straight to their house.

Himawari could feel Koeda shifting around in her bag, trying to get a good look through the opening.

Boruto let them into the house and they both called out for their mother.

"Mom! We're home!"

"Welcome back!" she called from the other side of the house. "Did you have fun?"

Himawari heard her mother's footsteps and got concerned. She would most likely take their bags and do the laundry. If she did that, she would discover Koeda.

It was too soon to reveal him. Himawari wanted to wait until her father got home that night and surprise him. She was worried her mother would make her take Koeda back, even if she explained it was only a visit and that she wasn't keeping him for a pet.

Boruto stepped further inside to hunt for his mother. He couldn't wait for her to come to him. Taking advantage of this, Himawari ran upstairs to her bedroom.

She clutched her bag to her chest as she ran, hoping Koeda wasn't being bumped around too much. She went into her room and closed the door. She set her bag on the floor and unzipped it.

Koeda slinked out and stood, looking around.

"This is my room," she explained. "You'll have to stay here until tonight. I don't want anyone finding you."

"Where's Naruto?" he asked.

"He's working and won't be home until tonight. We'll have to wait until then, ok?"

He nodded. "So I hide here?"

"Yeah. Just keep out of sight. I'll come back to check on you later." Himawari gathered her bag and left her room. She made sure the door was closed before heading back downstairs.

When she arrived, she found her mother hugging Boruto in welcome.

"Himawari, there you are," she said. "Welcome home."

She went to give her mother a hug.

"Did you two have fun?"

Boruto complained while Himawari told her all about how much fun the ball was and how nice the royal family was to them.

Of course, she left out the part about the kitsune again. That could wait until tonight.

It was going to be a great surprise.

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

Himawari picked at the remains of her food, looking in the direction of the front door. She hoped her father would be back by now but dinner was almost over and there was no sign of him.

Boruto ate at his normal pace. He barely glanced at the doorway. He didn't expect Naruto to return until after they were in bed. It happened more often than he would like.

What he really wanted to do was tell him off the second he walked through the door. He wanted to scold his father for making them walk all the way back home alone from a foreign land because the clone he sent in his place popped.

He really wanted to do that, but instead he ate his father's portion to get back at him. When Naruto came home, there would be no dinner for him.

Himawari had a second helping herself, but only because she was stocking up for Koeda. She sneaked her meat into her pocket to bring upstairs.

After dinner, Himawari went upstairs to feed him. She dumped the meat on the floor and Koeda crept out from under her bed. As he ate, Himawari apologized that her father was running late. Koeda said he understood and would continue to wait for him to arrive.

Hours passed and there was still no sign of their father.

Hinata tucked both children into bed. Boruto protested that he was too old to be tucked in, but accepted the gesture anyway. Himawari made sure Koeda was hidden before letting her mother into the bedroom. Hinata tucked her in and kissed her good-night.

Himawari waited and waited. She did not hear the front door open or her father's voice. She waited and was disappointed. She had everything planned but it all went to waste.

She whispered a conversation to Koeda, apologizing again. They chatted for a little while until Himawari was too tired to speak. After getting hardly enough sleep last night and staying up late tonight, she could barely keep her eyes open.

Koeda noticed the silence and climbed on top of her bed to investigate. Discovering that Himawari was asleep, he glanced around the room for a form of entertainment.

She left her window open.

Koeda hopped off her bed and onto the windowsill. He looked around at the Leaf Village. It was dark and quiet, but the streetlights were still on. He rarely saw such things. He didn't understand why humans needed lamps outside when they were indoors and asleep when they were lit. He didn't understand a lot of things about humans.

But this was his chance.

A chance to not only learn more about them, but to practice his fox magic.

Koeda jumped out the window to explore the village.

* * *

Naruto rubbed his eyes. "I can't do anymore tonight," he complained. "All this paperwork… My eyes are tired."

Shikamaru said nothing from his seat.

"Shikamaru?"

Still no answer.

"Shikamaru!"

"What?" He bolted upright in his seat.

"Did you fall asleep on me?"

"No." Shikamaru rubbed his forehead. "I was just resting my eyes."

"That means you were asleep."

Shikamaru scoffed.

"Go home and get some rest."

"I feel bad leaving you here to do it all by yourself."

"Oh, but not the other times?" Naruto put a hand on his hip. "Shikamaru, I got this. Go home."

Shikamaru sighed. "It's been a long day."

"So go home."

"After what happened at the meeting this morning?" Shikamaru raised a brow at him. "I don't know."

"What went wrong during the meeting? I think I nailed it."

Shikamaru rubbed his neck. "Uh…"

"What?"

"Well, you heard the others. They're questioning your methods. Some of your decisions are questionable to them. They think…"

"I'm too lenient?" Naruto finished. "That I need to be harsher? That some people don't deserve a second chance or someone to talk to?"

"Well, some of those people you have in programs… and the training…"

"If I condemned every person who either lashed out for feeling unwanted or did something out of hate, what kind of example would I be setting?" asked Naruto. "And what would I be saying about myself?"

"Naruto, you're not like some of those people."

"Who's to say I wouldn't have been? I know what it's like to feel that way. And so does Gaara. He went off the deep end, but he managed to claw his way back up. He got better because someone gave him a chance. Someone talked to him. He finally had someone he could relate to who understood him. And so do I."

Naruto shoved the paperwork aside and faced Shikamaru.

"I can't give up on those people. I'll give them the chance no one else would."

"But the people at the meeting felt that they don't deserve any chances. One wrong move and you're done, as far as they're concerned."

"Don't you think they had a reason for doing what they did?" Naruto asked. "Don't condemn them before you know what they're about. You need to know why. That's important. You have to understand. They could have a reason for doing what they do."

Shikamaru sighed. "The elders at the meeting said to your face that you can't be a shrink to everyone."

"I don't think anyone is born bad. People become villains for a reason. It's not out of the blue. They had a reason. Once we understand that, we can do something about it. We can even help them."

"They're worried that kind of thinking is going to put the entire village at risk."

"But I argued that I am taking precautions. Some of those people are in programs away from the people they may try to hurt. Others are still locked in their cells underground. It's not like I'm freeing dangerous criminals." Naruto pointed out something else. "And I also suggested that some members of ANBU needed to be reformed due to their intense and unorthodox training."

"Yes, I know that. That was a good idea."

"And I wouldn't have thought to do such a thing if I had never met Sai. I saw what Danzo did to him and Sai told us later on when he was able to. The people who trained under him were warped. It was a cruel form of training and unneeded."

"But the elders still feel that emotions can get in the way. That even you are too ruled by your emotions to think."

Naruto sighed. "If anything, I think it's because of my emotions that I'm able to see with clarity. That I can make the right call. Not everything is fact and figures. We need to see others as human beings and not tools to be used. That will be our downfall. Not our emotions."

"They're still stuck in their ways on that topic."

"Think of your kid, Shikamaru. Do you see him as a tool or as your child?"

Shikamaru grew quiet.

"I know I can't save everyone. But I want to give others a chance. And if that chance gives them an opening to attack us, then it's important for us to be ready to fight back," said Naruto. "I'm not stupid. There are some people who cannot be reasoned with."

Recently, Naruto noticed how the village had changed for the better in some ways. Certain methods were done away with and others were modified. He also noticed how some were resistant to certain changes. There were those who questioned his motives and called him out on certain things. Many of the elders at these meetings claimed that he wasn't making the right call. That his decision was dangerous and would put the village at risk.

Many refused to see differently. Naruto implored them to give his way a chance and they would see. They claimed that doing things this way made it seem like an experiment; further proving that even he did not fully know what he was doing. It was a 'wait and see' mentality. He couldn't blame them for being uncertain.

However, Naruto had his friends to back him up when he made these calls. At least, he thought he did.

Shikamaru had been actively involved in bringing the ninja villages together and forming connections. He also wanted change. However, Naruto noticed that recently, Shikamaru had been backing Naruto up less and less at these meetings. He seemed to side with them more than he did Naruto to some extent.

When they came across people of different lands or people who did not belong to any village and had gone rogue, Shikamaru preferred to keep them at arm's length rather than embrace them as Naruto tended to do. Shikamaru thought that if these people proved to be a threat, then they shouldn't be allowed to run free and endanger the village. He said that there were families to think of.

Naruto thought of the innocent. He thought of his family and the families of everyone in the village. But he also thought of the families that belonged to those who were thought to be dangerous.

If they attacked or killed the so-called dangerous ones, what would their families think? Would they find the Leaf to be dangerous? An enemy? Naruto feared it would breed hatred.

He had seen it many times. Itachi wasn't really a villain. There was more to his story. If people knew what really happened, then Sasuke might not have turned out the way that he did. It would have saved them both a lot of pain. Kakashi and Obito. What happened to Rin.

Different perspectives, circumstances. It wasn't all black and white.

He wondered if Shikamaru still understood that.

Maybe he did, but he had a certain way of thinking, like everyone else. There were rules. Playing a game any differently would either be called cheating or not playing the game at all.

Shikamaru needed a vacation. He needed to take a step back and learn to think differently. To see from another perceptive.

Naruto already knew how to think outside the box and be different. It was harder to show someone else who wasn't used to it. It would require training.

Naruto sighed. "Our kids will be taking the exams soon."

"Yeah. Shikadai hasn't really talked about it that much. When Temari brought it up and told him to do his best, he said it was a pain. When she told him to just play the game, he smiled."

Naruto grinned. "Oh?"

"Yeah." Shikamaru was smiling, too. "He likes games. Maybe it's the only way we can get him to participate."

"If he thinks it's a game."

"He'll play to win." Shikamaru paused. "Or quit while he's ahead so he doesn't lose."

Naruto laughed.

Looking at the clock, they realized it was time for both of them to go home. What little paperwork remained would have to wait until tomorrow.

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

Himawari awoke to find her room completely empty. No matter how many times she called, Koeda would not answer. She searched her room from top to bottom for the little fox.

He wasn't under the bed or in her closet. He wasn't behind her dresser or behind the curtain. He wasn't hiding among her stuffed animals. He wasn't anywhere.

"Where are you?" She was starting to get scared. She was worried something had happened to him. Had he been discovered by her parents in the middle of the night and sent away? Had he run off somewhere because he got scared? Was he looking for food? She thought she had fed him enough.

"Himawari?" Hinata asked from the doorway. "What are you doing?"

"I'm looking for something."

"Oh? What is it?"

Himawari froze, knowing she couldn't tell her mother. "N- nothing."

Hinata brushed it off and told her daughter to come down for breakfast. Hinata assumed Himawari was playing a game and got embarrassed when her mother came in asking questions. Perhaps she was getting to that age where she was bothered by people watching her play.

In a few short years, she wasn't going to be a child anymore.

"And another thing!" Boruto's voice carried to the bottom of the stairs from the kitchen. As soon as he discovered his father was home, he started right in with the verbal abuse.

Hinata came into the kitchen and saw Naruto trying to eat his breakfast while Boruto leaned across the table to yell at him. Naruto was doing his best to ignore his child's complaints, but it was hard to do.

Fed up, Boruto took his father's plate away from him and shoved it across the table.

"No breakfast until you give me some answers!" Boruto told him.

Naruto sighed. "Boruto… I wanted to be with you. I do. And I wanted to go to that party with you. I did. But I couldn't ignore my work. Shikamaru couldn't reschedule the meetings and the paperwork could not wait another day. There was a deadline. We had supplies that needed to be ordered for the village and if we don't do it within a certain amount of time, they won't be delivered when we need it. It takes time for the order to be made and filled and shipped and picked up. I couldn't put that stuff on hold."

"But you can with us?" Boruto gave his father an angry look. "So your family is put on the back burner while you take care of complete strangers? The village can take care of itself. The people need to pull their own weight around here. You can't-"

"I have a responsibility to the village. Someone has to be Hokage. I was chosen for the job and I take it seriously. I have to do my work in order for you and your sister to grow up in a safe and caring environment. If the job went to someone else, the village might be different. And not for the better."

"So it's your way or no way?"

"In a way… But-"

"Do you know how bratty that sounds?" Boruto folded his arms. "Take a break for a day. Everyone needs a break. The village won't go to pieces simply because you're not here for one day."

"I can't just drop everything. There are certain-"

"Screw it!" Boruto snapped. "You never listen to me anyway! Why don't you put a clone at your desk and be with us? What's wrong with that?"

"We've been through this."

"You're a broken record!"

"Look who's talking!"

Hinata tried to interrupt. "Would anyone like juice?"

Naruto held out his cup and Boruto resisted the urge to knock it out of his hand.

Naruto finished his drink and got up from the table. "I'll see you later tonight. Love you."

Hinata kissed him on the cheek. "Love you. Have a good day."

Naruto left the house, passing under his daughter's bedroom window. She was still searching for Koeda but could find no trace of him.

"Where is he?" she asked herself, tossing her pillow aside. "Where did he go?"

Knowing he was here not too long ago and had an amazing adventure together made the whole experience seem like nothing more than a dream.

* * *

A few minutes after his father left, Boruto also left the house to do some work. But first, he was going to play some games with his friends.

Defeating the video-game characters didn't help improve his mood. He usually blew off steam this way, but today was a little different. It helped him take his mind off things for a bit and he had fun. However, when the game was done, all those thoughts resurfaced. All he could think about was his father and what he had done.

He said good-bye to his friends and left to do something else.

He knew his sensei had scheduled training for that afternoon, but he wanted to blow off some steam and decided to go to the park to box with a tree.

He went deep into the park only to find that his teammates were already there, training. It seemed that Sarada wanted to improve her skills before the drill this afternoon to impress Konohamaru. This way, whatever they faced would be no problem for her.

Mitsuki was with her but he didn't seem to be training. He was standing nearby when Boruto arrived, watching Sarada. Boruto couldn't tell if they had been having a conversation or not.

The two stopped what they were doing when he walked over. They made small talk and soon Boruto was telling them all about his latest issue with his father and the adventure he had been on.

"So you didn't have fun at this party thing?" asked Sarada. "It sounded like fun."

"I don't want to talk about it," growled Boruto.

"Then why'd you bring it up?"

"Imagine," said Mitsuki in awe. "The Hokage knows royalty in other lands and holds friendships with them. How beneficial. And to think he was friends with royalty before ascending to power. Such talent."

"Can you be quiet, Mitsuki?" Boruto asked him.

"Sorry, it's just that I find it very interesting. Not to mention that you had met this royal family once before."

"What?" Sarada gasped. "When?"

"Boruto told me when he was preparing to leave for this party. He said that he met the royal family once before. He didn't go into detail about it."

"When did this happen? Where were we?"

Boruto didn't want to mention it. When he had told Mitsuki, it was a slip of the tongue. They were having a casual conversation and it slipped out.

He had never mentioned the mission he had taken on himself and didn't intend to. He wanted it to stay in the dark.

"If Boruto has already met the royal family, even before attending this party, then it just further confirms the inevitable," said Mitsuki. "Befriending royalty at such a young age… He'll make a magnificent Hokage one day. Possibly even surpass the current one."

"I'll surpass him without being the Hokage!" Boruto snapped.

"I'm the one who's going to become Hokage and not for the power," said Sarada. "It's to make connections. Those are even more powerful than the status power most people seek from the position."

Mitsuki nodded. "Mm-hmm. Very wise. Beautiful words. Connecting with others to form strength and to have strength. Yes, indeed. But I'm afraid Boruto would make a worthier Hokage than you."

"Why's that?" asked Sarada bitterly. "Because of his background? What about what he wants? He says he doesn't want it. So shouldn't the position go to someone who actually wants it?"

"Not if they are unworthy."

"I'm not there yet but I will be."

"I still have my doubts."

"Can we drop this already?" Boruto snapped.

They quieted.

Mitsuki glanced around. "There's still daylight. Want to work on some training before sensei shows up?"

"There's no need," said Boruto. "You guys can if you want."

"Once again implying that-"

Sarada cut her sentence short when she saw a can of soda fly through the air and hit Boruto on the shoulder.

"Ow…" Boruto looked down. If the can hadn't been empty it would have hurt a lot more.

"Boruto!" Shikadai called from the grass.

Inojin grabbed the back of Shikadai's shirt to hold him back. "Please wait. You really don't have to. It's not that big a deal."

"You cheater!" Shikadai snapped.

Boruto chuckled nervously. "Oh, so you noticed, huh?"

Shikadai stood in front of Boruto with an angry look on his face but nothing about his stance suggested that he wanted to hit Boruto. He only intended to yell.

"You unplugged the controller! You cheater!"

"It took you that long to notice something so obvious?" asked Sarada. "I'm surprised."

"Actually, not really," admitted Inojin timidly. "See, we were playing video-games and we were hopelessly deadlocked for one of them no matter how much we played. So it was suggested that we play facing backwards. For more of a challenge."

Sarada raised her brow.

"This way, we would all be fighting blindly. When the game declared a winner, we would turn around and see who it was."

"And Boruto won."

Inojin nodded. "Yeah. Since he unplugged the controller, Shikadai's character couldn't move or attack, so Boruto was able to beat him even if he couldn't see the screen or what his character was doing."

"And since your backs were all turned, you wouldn't have noticed until later," observed Mitsuki.

"Yeah!" snapped Shikadai. "But the reason I'm mad is because he only unplugged mine and we had a bet going."

"You had a bet?"

"All the money I got from the last two missions."

Sarada turned to Inojin. "Yours, too?"

He shook his head. "I didn't take the bet."

"Which is why he's more upset than you are."

Boruto shrugged his shoulders. "I still won."

"But you cheated!"

"Who cares how you win as long as you do? You want the outcome so who cares how you achieve it?"

"Boruto, just give him his money back," Sarada told him.

"But I won."

"You cheated."

"But I won."

"By cheating!"

Shikadai sighed loudly. "Ugh, never mind. It's too much hassle to shake him down for money, even if it is mine. Screw it."

"But, Shika-"

"It's too much work. Too troublesome."

"But-"

"You heard him, Sarada. Let him be."

Sarada put her hands on her hips. "You better make this right. Either return his money, what's left of it, or buy him a gift to make up for it."

"What? Why should I?"

"It's the right thing to do, you little cheater."

"You weren't even there! Why the hell should I-"

"I'll tell your mom."

Mitsuki raised his brow. "What are we, children? So juvenile, playing the mom card. Though still very effective."

"Stay out of this!"

He shrugged and stepped back.

The argument went on for some time, long after Shikadai had given up. Boruto and Sarada went back and forth, neither wanting to admit defeat. It was no longer about right and wrong. It was about winning the argument.

Shikadai and the others sat in the grass, waiting for it to be over. Shikadai lay on his back and watched the clouds through the trees. Mitsuki sat against a tree trunk and watched the two duke it out with words. Inojin poked the ground with a stick.

Inojin looked over at a tree nearby, seeing movement. He crawled the short distance to the tree and looked at the roots. Maybe he had seen a squirrel. Then he looked up and noticed a furry face.

Thinking it was either a cat or a small dog, he clicked his tongue and extended his hand to coax it forward.

A small fox stepped into view, staring at him.

Inojin was surprised to see a fox in the village; and one so social. Thinking he could pet it, he remained still, showing the fox it had nothing to fear. He moved a little closer and whispered to it.

"Hey, there. It's ok. It's ok."

The fox stared at him.

"Hey, there. Hey, there, little guy."

What a docile fox. It didn't do anything but stare. Inojin was starting to wonder if this animal was someone's pet. It didn't appear rabid, so there must have been another reason for it to not fear humans.

Then again, it wasn't moving. Inojin knew it wasn't fake. He had seen the animal move before.

The fox grinned at him.

Inojin froze. "Hm?"

The fox jumped and entered his chest.

"Wha-?!" He saw the tail wiggle around and then get sucked inside his body. It all happened so fast, he couldn't make sense of it.

Soon, everything went dark and he became numb.

"How much longer is this going to drag on?" asked Boruto.

"Do what I tell you."

"You're the one keeping it up."

"Only because you…" Sarada looked down.

Inojin was crawling on all fours by her legs.

"What are you doing?"

Inojin glanced up at her and moved closer.

"Inojin…" This was bizarre behavior for him. For anyone, actually.

Mitsuki saw what Inojin was doing and said, "There are easier ways to look up her skirt. Less obvious, as well."

Sarada shot him a look. "Oh, shut up."

Just then, Inojin grabbed the hem of her dress and flipped it up.

"Eek!"

Mitsuki's eyes widened.

"Inojin!" she shrieked.

"At least you're wearing shorts," said Mitsuki.

"Shut up!" She turned back to Inojin. "What is the matter with you?"

"Keh-hehehehehe!" he snickered.

Something was wrong. Inojin didn't laugh like that. Sarada was quick to realize that before she smacked him.

He rolled in the grass and started to stand up. It took him a few tries before he managed to find his legs and started running.

"Inojin!"

He turned back and smiled at her. The smile was not his.

"Guys, there's something wrong with him."

"And?" said Mitsuki.

"And we have to do something. Come on, you guys know he doesn't act like this. Let's go."

They agreed and followed after him.

Inojin ran through the park, looking at everything around him as if seeing it for the first time. He stumbled a few times, unused to running like this. He was more comfortable on four legs rather than two.

"So this is how it is for humans. Weird."

"Inojin!"

He looked over his shoulder. "Whoops. They found me. Better lose 'em."

He ran out of the park and down the street. He pushed through the crowd and into an alley.

"Inojin!"

He could hear them coming closer. He stood still at the end of the alley and faced the way he had entered. A fox jumped out of his back and climbed over the chain-link fence and ran off.

Inojin fell forward onto the ground as his friends arrived.

"There he is!"

"Inojin, are you alright?"

Inojin scrambled to his feet and looked around in a panic. He grabbed Sarada's shoulders tightly to steady himself.

"I don't know what that was," he panted, eyes wide with fear. "I just… blacked out! I don't know how I got here or anything. I don't know what happened. I don't know…"

The group exchanged looks.

"A jutsu, maybe?" suggested Mitsuki.

"None of us did anything. Boruto and I were talking while he was acting weird."

"And what kind of jutsu can do that?" asked Shikadai. "I don't even know what that was."

A scream came from the other side of the building. It sounded like a woman.

"Let's check it out."

The group went to the other side of the fence and saw a woman backing away from a man who was digging through her grocery bag with his head. He pulled out different foods with his teeth and snacked while onlookers watched and murmured.

"Well, that's different," said Shikadai.

"That guy's on all fours like Inojin was," observed Sarada. "He must be suffering from the same thing."

"Yeah, but what?" asked Boruto. "You think he's sick or something? I've never seen a jutsu do that to a person."

"Maybe it isn't a jutsu."

"What else could it be?"

One of the onlookers tried to stop the man and ask him some questions. When he did, the man ran away from him. His run was sloppy. He kept stumbling like a toddler after just learning to walk.

"It's got to be the same thing," said Sarada. "He's acting the same way Inojin was. We have to do something."

"You suggesting a doctor or what?"

"I don't know, but we have to do something."

The man ran around the corner and another woman screamed. The man had bumped into her chest and rather than apologize, he sniffed her. The woman slapped him so hard he fell.

"Ow!" the man exclaimed. "You humans hit hard."

"Pervert!" the woman shouted.

"What's 'pervert'?" asked the man.

The man seemed genuine in his question. It seemed he had never heard that word before. This was odd for a man his age. Surely he would know the definition by this age.

The man looked around and saw the same group of children trying to make their way across the street to where he was sitting.

"They caught up to me already. They're fast." The man smiled. "She was pretty quick, too. I guess humans are fast."

The man stood up, a little faster this time, and started to run away. He ran into the crowd, trying to lose them. The group split up and tried to hunt him down. Two of the children were running across the rooftops.

Thinking fast, the man deliberately ran into another man, almost knocking him over.

"Hm?" Shikadai watched as the man they were chasing quickly give up and sat on the ground with a dazed look on his face. At the same time, the man he had bumped into started to run in a different direction.

It seemed that this situation was more complicated than they thought.

Shikadai jumped down to inform the others. "Guys, I think this person can take control of different people he touches."

"What makes you say that?" asked Sarada.

"When I was watching that man just now. He bumped into someone and they started to act weird. And that first guy turned normal again. I think that's why Inojin returned to normal after acting weird. The person took control of someone else. I think they can only control one person at a time."

Inojin gulped. "My mom can transfer her mind into someone else's body. You think it's the same jutsu? Or something similar? 'Cause come to think of it, my mom has to return to her body in order to go to another body. She can't just body-jump. But if it is, shouldn't we be looking for this person's body? They must have left it lying around somewhere."

"Good point. I don't think it's the same jutsu. It has to be different. Question is, what kind of jutsu can do this?"

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7:**

Himawari waited for hours, hoping Koeda would come back. She still didn't know why he left. She was worried something was wrong. She hoped she hadn't offended him. She hoped no one had discovered him and took him away.

She was worried.

She sat by her window with a bowl of food for him. She left her window open all day in hopes he would return to rest at some point. Or to eat.

If he was still in the village.

She didn't know what to think.

She sighed.

She had so much planned. She wanted to introduce him to her father. She wanted to show him around the village. She wanted to play with him more.

Where was he?

* * *

Boruto and the others only stopped their search of the man when the screams of the villagers stopped. They looked around for anyone behaving oddly but no one stood out. Either the one responsible became better at blending in or they ended their activity.

No one could figure out what kind of jutsu it was. The only one they could think of was the jutsu Inojin's mother could use, but it wasn't the same as what they were seeing. No one knew what to think.

After things got quiet, they called off their search. They weren't going to find anything. It would have been a waste of time to try.

Each group went a different way. Boruto's group went to report to the training grounds. Their sensei must have been waiting for them.

Once there, Boruto came out and asked his sensei if he was aware of any jutsu that could do what they witnessed.

Konohamaru looked puzzled. "What makes you ask that?"

"We saw people acting weird in the village and wanted to know."

"In the village?" Konohamaru looked into the distance, still looking puzzled. "I haven't noticed anything unusual. This happened today, you said?"

"Yeah. Just a short time ago. We tried hunting them down, but the people stopped acting weird so we figured they stopped."

Konohamaru shrugged. "Ah. It might have been someone practicing their jutsu."

"But what kind of jutsu?"

"Don't know. Perhaps this person is trying to figure it out themselves. You know, the Hokage managed to invent his own jutsu. A couple of them, I believe. This person might be trying to do the same thing."

"Really?" asked Sarada.

"Yeah, so I wouldn't worry about it." From the sound of things, the caster wasn't causing any real damage.

The group didn't give the subject anymore thought. Konohamaru didn't think anything of it so there must have been no danger.

Boruto wasn't sure about the others, but just because they weren't addressing the event didn't mean they weren't still thinking about it.

He wondered what that jutsu was. He wondered if he could use it himself. It seemed useful. And fun. He wanted answers. He wanted to know what that jutsu was called. More importantly, who was using it.

"Well, shall we get started?" Konohamaru asked them, clapping his hands together.

* * *

Himawari didn't stay in her bed. Even after her mother tucked her in. She kept her woes to herself and the bowl of food hidden under her bed. She only brought the bowl out again after Hinata had left and went to bed.

Himawari climbed out of bed and put the bowl on the windowsill. She sat there and waited, looking out at the streetlights. She looked left and right. She looked below and she looked at the sky.

She waited.

And she waited.

She did a lot of waiting when it came to the kitsune. She thought she'd be used to it by now.

She waited for hours but nothing happened. She was beginning to lose hope.

Maybe she would never see him again. Maybe it was all a dream.

Then she saw a shadow.

"Ah!" She sat up straight with a big smile on her face. "You're back!"

It was Koeda. He had returned.

She was so happy to see him.

"Where'd you go? Where have you been? I was worried."

"Sorry," Koeda said, helping himself to the food in the bowl. "I was exploring the village."

"Oh." Himawari slumped sadly. "I was going to show you the village."

"That's ok."

Himawari had so many plans. She should have known it wouldn't go flawlessly. If there was one thing she learned from having the Hokage as a father, it was that plans changed and she couldn't always get her way when it came to making plans. She had to be flexible.

Still, she was disappointed.

"You know, my dad should be coming home soon. Sometimes he works late. But he should he here any minute. You still want to meet him? I can show you off."

That was the only plan she had left. If Koeda already met him, then she really didn't get to do much of anything.

"He's not here now, so I'll wait."

Himawari assumed this meant that Koeda was going to stay in her room until Naruto came home. She cheered up, thinking her plans hadn't all gone to waste. There was still something she could do.

"You'll love him. Daddy's lots of fun."

"Yeah," said Koeda. "I'm having fun already. We're all going to have a blast."

Himawari again assumed the meaning behind Koeda's words. She thought he meant that they were all going to have fun once they got to know each other. He was going to have fun with Naruto and the whole family. Maybe even play some games, like she did in the forest. That was fun.

"I bet it will be even better as a group."

"What do you mean? You mean having fun with me and my family, right?"

"Probably." Koeda licked the bowl clean. "I actually meant the others."

"Others?"

Something zoomed by the window.

Himawari put her hands on the windowsill and leaned outside for a better look. She saw another fox on the roof across the street. It hopped onto a streetlight and sat there, looking around. Another fox climbed up a porch and found its way onto the roof.

"My friends are here," announced Koeda. "This is going to be great."

Himawari was confused. They hadn't discussed this. "I… I don't think I can hide all of you guys in my room," she told him.

"Oh, we're not staying here. We're going to play in the village. Like I did today."

"You played?" She was even more confused now. "But I thought you guys were nervous around humans. And some of the people might…"

"Oh, I didn't talk to any humans. I just played with them."

"But how? How can you do that without talking to them?" None of this made any sense to her.

"I used my fox magic on them," Koeda said proudly. "You said they would be impressed and like to see it. So I did it."

Himawari's head was starting to spin. "I don't get it. What do you mean you used your magic on them?"

"I cast some illusions and really scared them." Koeda grinned. "Their faces were great! Plus, I possessed a few humans in the village and played with the ones nearby. They chased me. It was fun."

"You possessed a human?" She didn't know they could do that. "But why?"

"To play," he told her. "And that way I don't have to worry about the humans hurting me. Not if I'm in a human body. It was great. I got everyone to look at me, I got chased, I got to eat the food the humans had. I got people screaming, too." Koeda looked out the window. "And now that my friends are here, we can all do it."

"What? No! Why would you..?"

"Because it's fun," he said. "You said we could play and that the humans would be impressed and like our fox fire."

"But… But…" Himawari's heart was pounding.

Was this really what Koeda thought? Was this his idea of fun? Did he not understand what she meant when they talked before?

"I think you might have the wrong idea, Koeda."

"But it was so much fun! Now we all get to do it."

"But why would you want to do that?"

"Because we can't do it in our village," explained Koeda. "The rules say that we can't use our magic on the humans in the town. But there's no rule against us doing it here. The rules say we can't go into the human town under the mountain. But we can go into this human village. There's no rules against it. And you said we could come."

"I did, but…"

"And since we never get to, this is the perfect opportunity for us to do it here on all these humans," Koeda went on. "We never get to do it, so a lot of us haven't gotten a chance to practice. Now we can hone our skills and practice on these humans. It'll help us get stronger and it will be fun."

"But I only brought you," Himawari said. "I don't get how your friends managed to get here."

"They followed our scent," he explained. "They memorized your scent and they already know mine. So all they had to do was wait for their chance and they left the mountain, following our scents all the way here. I told them all about what we were doing and they said they wanted to go, too."

Koeda stood up and looked out the window.

"And now we all can play in this village and practice our fox magic! We get to play with the humans and everything. We never get to, so this will be a blast!" He looked back at Himawari. "And it's all thanks to you."

"Me?"

"Yeah! You invited me and showed us the way. You said we could come here since there's no rules. You said the humans would be fun to play with. Thanks a bunch!"

Himawari was panicking. "I didn't mean that you-"

"Oh, looks like the others have already started. I gotta go. You wanna come with us and play for a bit?"

"No! I-"

"Ok. I'll see you later, then." Koeda prepared to jump out the window.

"Wait, Koeda! What I said before, I didn't mean that-"

Koeda jumped and ran down the street.

"Wait! Stop! Koeda!" Himawari leaned her body out the window and watched the kitsune scurry around the village and disappear into the shadows.

Himawari stepped away from the window, cupping her hands to her face.

"Oh, no. Oh, no! What have I done? What did I do? I didn't think Koeda meant all this. He must have misunderstood me. I didn't think he would do this."

She never imagined kitsune could cause so much chaos. When she brought Koeda here, she thought they would have a nice social visit. Instead he was running around scaring humans and taking their food? She had no idea what else he and his friends would do.

Koeda only told her a little of what he had done in one afternoon. She had a feeling there was so much more that he wasn't telling her. And now that there were more of them, there was no limit to what they could do. Koeda's damage would be multiplied.

"This is all my fault," Himawari moaned. "I had no idea he would do this. I have to do something about it."

But what could she do? She was the one who brought them here. She told them they could interact with humans. Even if Koeda misunderstood her meaning, she still put the idea in his head. How could she stop them when they thought she had given them the ok? There were too many of them and they had all gone in different directions. She couldn't possibly stop them by herself.

But she had to. She brought them here. It was her responsibility.

But she was still young and relied on her parents to do just about everything for her. She wasn't a fully trained ninja. She couldn't do this alone.

Even if she was a ninja, there were too many of them to round up. She needed help.

What was she supposed to do? Tell her parents? Would she get in trouble? Would they be angry with her? Would they even believe her? Naruto might, but she didn't think anyone other than him had ever come across a kitsune. Her mother might think she was making it up.

Even if she told them and they believed her, what would happen? What would they do?

Koeda and the other kitsune were her friends. They played together just the other night. She didn't want them getting hurt. She was afraid the people in the village would try to cage the kitsune. Maybe even kill them. Especially if they thought they were threats.

Was it right for her to tell her parents? To tell anyone?

They might misunderstand like Koeda and the others. She didn't want any more misinterpretations.

Maybe if she talked to the kitsune and tried to explain things to them, they would stop what they were doing before things got out of hand.

But how? Koeda ran off and the others were scattered. It would have been easier to talk to them all at once so they were on the same page. With them scattered, she would have to track down each one to explain things.

And them being scattered was another issue. If she tried talking to one, it might get distracted by something and run off. Koeda seemed more interested in what his friends were doing than listening to what Himawari had to say. He was too excited to bother with anything else.

She had no idea they had such short attention-spans. She only noticed it now.

Something had to be done.

But what?

Should she go off on her own? Should she tell someone? Should she just wait it out and hope for the best?

She doubted a bowl of food would be enough to stop them. Even as a lure, she was most likely going to attract something else before getting all the kitsune to converge on a single location.

Himawari sat on her floor and brought her knees up to her chest, hands on her head.

"What do I do? What do I do? What do I do? What do I do?"

She had never been so overwhelmed in her life.

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8:**

Two ninja on watch duty walked down the street together having a conversation. They passed under numerous streetlights, focusing on what the light illuminated rather than what could have been on the lights themselves. If they had, they might have seen what was coming before it was too late.

"I'm bushed," said one of the men. "You wanna call it a night and head home?"

"We still have ten minutes on our watch," said the other.

"It's so boring out here. Nothing ever happens."

"It has been peaceful lately. Makes you wonder why they need someone on patrol. Guarding the gate I can understand, but doing rounds on the street like this?"

"That's why I want to head home soon."

"I'd rather get a drink. You in?"

"What bar would be open this late?"

"A good one."

"I'll pass. Besides, I really think all bars would be closed at this hour."

"Yeah, you're probably right. They might be shoving the last drunk out the door as we speak."

"What about that one up the road a-ways? That's open until two, ain't it?"

"Like drunks stop drinking at two in the morning."

"You're the one who wanted to drink. The only other option is to go into the city area."

"That's a trip. I want to go to a place nearby."

"It's near. I can see it from here. Look." The man pointed.

"I mean nearby as in I can walk there in five minutes."

"If you hustle…"

The man shoved him. "I think I'd rather lead by your example and just go to bed once we finish up."

"We could just pack it in early. Nothing's going on. It's very calm. Just like every other night."

"Yeah, maybe we should. Nothing's happening."

Two foxes jumped down from the streetlight above. One entered the man's back and he gasped, gaining the second man's attention. Before he could ask what was wrong, the second fox entered the other man who hunched over.

"Whoa!" The first man wobbled and fell over.

"You ok, Moyashi?" asked the man in a different tone of voice.

"Yeah. I think so."

"Is the human resisting?"

"No. No, he's not. Good thing he's tired. I have full control, I think. I just fell over 'cause of these legs." The man tried to stand up, but couldn't manage it. It looked like he was trying to do a crab-walk rather than stand up. "I don't know how humans do it."

"I'll help you."

The other man tried to help his partner, but when he did, both fell over.

"How do humans walk on two legs? This is hard!"

"I got it, I got it." The fallen man tried to get up by pushing himself up on his hands. His feet and hands were planted on the ground and there they remained. "Am I doing it?"

"You're still on fours. And hey, human legs are longer than their arms."

"They are?" The man looked at his body. "Hey, you're right. The head's below the tail like this."

"But humans don't have tails so you just look silly."

"I do?" The man pushed himself up and bent his knees for balance. He held out his arms to keep himself steady. "I got it. Do I got it?"

"You got it!"

"I did?" He looked down. "I got it! I'm standing like a human!"

"Let's try walking."

They practiced walking, wobbling on their two legs with their arms stretched out for balance. After a few tries, they were able to walk to the end of the block without falling over.

"We got it!"

"Let's go see the others."

* * *

Those who weren't finding sanctuary in a human body were scampering up buildings and peeking in windows, looking for someone to prank. Several foxes used their illusions to frighten the young children inside until they fled their rooms, calling for a parent. The foxes laughed and moved on to the next house where they did the same.

Some children were more frightened than others. Some assumed it was a sibling pranking them and went to the other room to yell at them. The arguing children woke the parents who came running in to break it up. The foxes watched, entertained.

Another fox decided to try pranking a pair of sleeping adults. The fox made a growling sound and used his fox fire to cast a frightening shadow across the opposite wall to scare the woman inside. She sat up in bed and saw the shadow waving back and forth.

Rather than get frightened, she rolled her eyes and smacked her husband with a pillow.

"Very funny, Shikamaru!"

"Huh? What?" He sat up in bed, pulling the pillow off his face.

"Go to sleep, you moron."

Shikamaru glared at her. "I was doing just fine until you hit me."

"Just go to sleep."

"I was sleeping until you woke me up. Why'd you wake me? Just to tell me to go to sleep?"

"Try being funny in the daytime." His wife rolled over.

Shikamaru was very confused. "Did I miss something? I know I just woke up from a sound sleep, but…"

"You know what you did."

Shikamaru sighed. "Whatever."

He didn't appreciate being woke up from a sound sleep. He also hated being scolding without knowing what he had done. Being cranky didn't help anything. Rather than demand an answer, he decided to take her advice and go back to sleep.

Just so she wouldn't hold any grudges, he mumbled a quick 'sorry' before rolling over. He didn't want his wife to be mad at him. That would have been troublesome.

* * *

The following morning seemed slower than usual. At least in the village. It was a strange mix of lack-luster and lethargic. In some areas. In others, it was as if everyone had to readjust to the lives they had been living thus far.

Everything felt… off.

Their usual lives had been disrupted by a feeling of uneasy. As if something weren't right.

For some, it was a fear that something would pop out and scare them at any moment. In other cases, it was wondering what had gotten into the people they knew. They were behaving oddly.

Some thought it was something they ate. Some thought it was just an elaborate prank. Others didn't know what to make of it.

A good percentage of the villagers felt as if they were stepping into a dream. As if the world they were living in was nothing more than a dream. Or a tampered reality.

Some people experienced this feeling with good reason. They had witnessed fox magic up close without knowing what it was. Others had this feeling without having experienced it up close, but felt the effects after seeing it happen to someone else. And others simply felt this way having been near someone who witnessed someone else have an experience.

It was atmospheric.

However, other places were relatively untouched and therefore no one viewed this day as any different from others. They carried on with their lives as usual.

Once they began their day, they soon realized that the village seemed slower than usual. They either moved slowly, as if hesitant of something, or spoke in a more simplified manor.

Overall, the slow feeling came from the people emerging from their houses at a slow pace, as if assessing damage. They peered through openings in the curtains, they opened the door a crack and looked around cautiously. They walked slowly out of their homes and looked around.

They looked like frightened children investigating a monster under their beds.

"Did anything weird happen to you last night?" the neighbors began to ask each other.

"No, nothing. Why?"

"I could have sworn…"

"Did you see that last night?"

"See what?"

"It looked like there was a bear outside my window."

"Aren't you on the second floor?"

"That's why it was nuts!"

"My child says they saw a monster in their room last night."

"My kid said the same thing."

"Did they see that movie together the other day?"

"It wasn't a scary movie."

Those affected tried to make sense of it all while others carried on with their lives, oblivious to what was happening around them.

"Dad! I'm heading out!" Chocho yelled from the next room. "I had seconds on breakfast so Mom says you need to buy more eggs. We are O-U-T, out!"

Chocho went to put her shoes on went she noticed that her father hadn't responded to anything she was saying. He didn't even tell her to have a nice day. She stood in the living room and saw her father on his knees, staring at the TV screen.

This was only odd to her because he usually sat in the chair to watch his programs.

"Dad, I'm heading out, I said." Chocho waited for him to answer. "I said, I'm heading out!"

Choji turned his head. "Ok." He turned back to look at the TV.

"Weird." Chocho shrugged her shoulders and left the house.

Choji stared at the TV. There was a woman reporting the news. She was facing him but it seemed like she wasn't actually talking to him.

"Hello?" Choji tried to interact with the woman but she never stopped talking to respond to him.

He tapped the glass with his finger. The woman didn't move when he touched her. He pulled his hand away and sniffed his fingers. His fingers touched glass, not flesh. There was something blocking his hand from touching her.

"How did this little human get in there?" Choji crawled closer to the TV to investigate. He looked behind the box, trying to find a door of some kind but all he found were wires. The human would not interact with him no matter what he did. "Is this thing a window? This glass thing?"

"Choji!" called Karui. "I've got a lot of work to do today so I need you to go to the store and get some things for me."

Choji ignored her which was the wrong thing to do.

"Choji! I'm calling you!" She stepped into the room. "Will you quit watching TV and listen to me?"

Choji turned his head. "I can't get this woman to stop talking." He pointed at the screen.

"Then change the channel, like an intelligent person." She picked up the remote and switched it off. "There. Remote works just fine. Nothing broken."

Choji stared at the TV in awe. "Whoa..! That was cool. How'd you do that?"

"It's called a remote, dumbass."

Choji took the remote from her hand and started to press random buttons until the screen lit up again. He flipped through channels with a big smile on his face.

"It's an illusion-maker! How cool!"

"Are you drunk?" Karui rolled her eyes. "Better not be. Not this early in the morning. And after I painstakingly cooked you breakfast."

Choji looked up. "You made me food?"

"Yeah. It's on the table."

Choji dropped the remote and went into the kitchen. He sat in one of the chairs and looked at the spread laid out before him.

"All this for me?" he drooled.

"Knowing you, you'll be having a bag of chips right after you finish."

"Can I eat it?" he asked her.

"Can you?" Karui raised her brow at him. "Of course you can. I made it for you."

"Great! Thanks a bunch!" Choji dove in face-first, eating the food like a dog. He gobbled up as much as he could while his wife sat and stared at him.

"A little enthusiastic today, aren't we?" She folded her arms. "You're cleaning this up."

Choji just ate.

"What the hell's gotten into you this morning?" Karui wondered aloud.

* * *

"Whoo-hoo!"

"Yeah!"

Two men dropped out of the sky and landed in the road. They were the same men on watch duty that night. As opposed to last night, they were able to run and jump on two legs without wobbling. They took turns running and jumping, challenging each other to do it from different heights.

A young girl came running down the street, grabbing anything she could get her hands on. She tore clothing off mannequins and knocked displays down. She ran in and out of stores, exploring. She tore open different bags to try the food inside and left a mess in her wake.

"Yuki!" called one of the two men. "That you?"

"Uh-huh!" The girl carried armfuls of food out the door. "There's food in these things!"

"That's food?"

"Yeah! This stuff is great!" She held up one item, dropping the rest.

The store manager came running out to stop her. She took his yelling as playful taunts and laughed.

"They've all been doing that," she said with a smile. "Then they chase me and I run away."

"Wow! Humans are so playful, aren't they?"

"Guys, check this out!" The other man came rushing over, holding a toy. "It moves when you touch it."

"Neat!"

The trio ran around the shopping center, doing as they pleased. The girl was even more excited than the men.

"Look at this! Look at this! Hey, look at that!" She stopped in front of a colorful machine outside a store. "Whoa! What is that thing?!"

The men stopped what they were doing to investigate it with her.

"Buttons!" One of the men said and started pressing. "It's not doing anything."

A child watched their strange antics for a while before explaining, "You've got to put money in there or the soda won't come out."

"What's soda?"

"Here, watch." The child stepped closer and inserted money into the machine. He pressed a button and a colorful can dropped out.

"Wow!" The trio gathered around and stared at the can, wondering what was inside.

One of them figured out that the tab on the top of the can was how they opened it. The can opened with a pop and they could hear what sounded like sizzling inside the can.

"What is it?"

One of them sniffed the contents. "It makes my nose twitch."

"Is it food?"

They tipped the can sideways and watched the pale green liquid pour out. One of them decided to lap up the stream of soda flowing out of the can and stepped back shaking his head.

"It tastes like melon but it makes my tongue prickle."

"Let me try."

They took turns trying the soda and they all agreed it was too odd to enjoy and tossed the can aside.

They explored a different location and the girl noticed something else. She grabbed what she could and ran out of the building to find the others.

"Check it out!" She dumped her findings on the ground. "I found this stuff in there. It's food!"

They opened the packages and started sniffing. Then they started eating.

"It's cold!" one of them exclaimed. "But it's warm out. How do they get it cold?"

"Human stuff is so cool! We never get these as offerings."

An adult came over to scold the girl. "Are you planning on paying for that ice cream you took?"

The girl looked up. "What's pay?"

"It's what humans do when they need something, I think."

"But how do they do it?"

The men shrugged.

The adult wasn't leaving.

"Let's just get out of here."

"You got it."

The trio got up and left. The adult yelled after them, but they didn't stop, even when threatened. They left all the food they had collected behind and ran into a crowd of people. They each selected someone in the crowd and soon they were the ones behaving oddly.

While the girl and two men were questioned, three people in the crowd looked on with smiles, giggling. They walked off to find more fun things to do while the other humans tried to make sense of it all.

* * *

"Pops was acting kinda weird this morning," Chocho told Sarada. "He was parked in front of the TV on his hands and knees. Usually he's in a chair. He wasn't eating breakfast with us either. Whatever he was watching must have been good."

"Your dad usually eats with you, right?" asked Sarada.

"Yeah. He usually eats before me because he gets up so early."

"So maybe he ate before you got to the table."

"Hm. Maybe. That would explain it." Chocho wasn't too concerned. Not anymore. "Was there anything in the news this morning? Dad seemed really into it."

"I didn't have the TV on this morning. Sorry."

"It's cool. Hey, did you want to get a snack with me at that dango shop? I have a coupon."

"Nah, I have to get to training. My sensei will get pissed if I'm late."

"Ok. More for me." Chocho waved to Sarada. "I'll see you later, then."

Sarada continued on her way to the training grounds. She stopped short, narrowly missing Himawari who was running the opposite direction. She was panting heavily and looked very worried.

"Everything ok?" Sarada asked her as she ran by but Himawari didn't answer.

Sarada went to the training grounds where Boruto was already waiting.

"Your sister ran by me just a second ago. You know what's up? She looked kind of freaked."

Boruto shook his head. "Not a clue. She said that she was going to play outside this morning. Maybe she's playing a game with some kids."

"I guess that makes sense." Sarada looked around. "Where's Sensei?"

"Don't know. He's late."

"Mitsuki isn't here either."

"I saw him in the shopping area. There was some kind of ruckus going on so he might be running late."

"Maybe Sensei is in the shopping area, too, and that's why he's late."

"I didn't see him there." Boruto stretched his arms and legs. "I'm gonna go find him. I can't wait around here forever."

* * *

Himawari stopped to catch her breath. She couldn't keep up with the kitsune. They kept jumping from one body to another, leaving everyone confused. Those who weren't in a human body were quick on their feet and ran off as soon as she got close. She couldn't tell if they were running from her or if they just didn't notice her as they got distracted.

She spotted some humans behaving strangely and stopped them. "Where is Koeda? Is one of you him?"

The human shook her head. "Nope. Yuki!" She pointed. "Over there's Moyashi."

She ran into two of Koeda's siblings. Himawari tried to reason with the brother and sister duo.

"Please stop possessing humans in the village."

"Why?"

"Because you're freaking people out. They get all confused and makes a huge mess."

"I know! Isn't it great?" The woman laughed. "I tasted so many things I never did before. I saw things I've never seen. And I've never been around so many humans before."

"This place is great!" chimed in the other human. "We're getting lots of practice in and getting stronger. This is great training for us, huh, Yuki?"

"So great!"

Himawari hesitated. This was a form of training for the foxes. They never got the chance to do this because of the rules enforced back at their home. It wouldn't be right for her to tell them to stop training. Coming from a ninja village and having a family who trained often, she knew how important it was. She couldn't just tell them to stop.

The kitsune had never experienced anything like this before. The Leaf Village was full of wonders. They just wanted to explore. They had never seen half these things before or tasted half these foods before. So much was new to them. She couldn't blame them for getting excited.

But letting it all go unchecked wasn't good for the village either. She saw the destruction they were leaving. Whether or not they meant to, they were causing a commotion in the village. Things were being knocked over, food was being stolen, garbage was everywhere, people were scared and confused, some were being blamed for the destruction when they weren't at fault. People were waking up in strange places and left to suffer at the hands of angry shop owners and family members while having no memory of the events.

It was a huge mess.

"Moyashi, look at that!"

"Wow, neat!"

The two humans ran off and Himawari chased after them.

"At least stop using possession on people for a few minutes! Or if you have to, at least try to act a little more human!" Himawari chased them through the street. "I can show you how! Please, wait up!"

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9:**

"Found him!" Boruto called over his shoulder. "Konohamaru-sensei, we've been waiting forever. What the hell's taking you?"

Konohamaru was facing the other direction, hunched over a pond.

"Sensei?"

Boruto walked to the side and noticed that Konohamaru was lapping up water with his tongue.

"S- Sensei?"

Konohamaru crawled away from the water and wiped his mouth off on the back of his hand.

"Big Brother Konohamaru?" Calling him by that title always got his attention. "Are you ok?"

Konohamaru looked at him. "Hello."

"Hi. Um… Are you ok?" he asked again.

He shrugged. "I thought it wouldn't make much difference. But male and female bodies are different, as it turns out."

"Huh?"

"It feels weird. I think I just have to get used to it. Like, I know human and animal makeups are different, but we're still able to operate a body. So I figured it made no difference if the body was male or female."

"What are you talking about?"

Konohamaru started to stand up. "I can operate it just fine, but it still feels weird."

Boruto watched his sensei stand. It took him a little while to balance himself.

Even more concerning was his voice. It was his voice, but the tone was different. He sounded like a child.

Something wasn't right. Maybe this wasn't his sensei. It must have been an impostor.

Boruto pulled his fist back and punched Konohamaru in the face. The adult fell backwards and held his cheek.

"He didn't transform back. So this is his real body?" Boruto was very confused.

"Ow!" Konohamaru held his cheek and looked at Boruto. "Humans hit hard!"

Boruto tried to think of an explanation. Perhaps this was part of a test. Konohamaru was challenging him.

"Hmph." Boruto faced his teacher and took a fighting stance. "You want more, Sensei?"

"You're gonna hit me again?" Konohamaru looked frightened. "What'd I do?"

Boruto raised his fists and moved closer.

Instinct kicking in, Konohamaru took his own stance, but it was different from Boruto's. He arched his back and let out a growl.

Boruto almost dropped his guard. "Seriously? What's going on with you?"

Nevertheless, he moved in to fight him.

Konohamaru jumped and went for Boruto's neck with his teeth. Being so much bigger than the boy, Boruto was knocked off his feet and was pinned under the adult. Konohamaru scratched at his face and growled.

"Mizumi!"

Konohamaru stopped and looked to his right. Choji was watching them, looking frightened.

"He attacked me!" Konohamaru complained. "He hit me and tried to do it again!"

Choji looked at Boruto and then at Konohamaru. "Then he's a dangerous one and we need to get away from him."

"Right." Konohamaru jumped up and ran after Choji and the two left the training grounds.

Boruto sat up, stunned.

Sarada finally caught up to him. "Boruto, are you..?"

"What the hell's going on!?" he screamed.

* * *

Back in the village, the two foxes left their host bodies and scampered onto a rooftop to rest.

"Good thing it wasn't your body he hit, right?"

"I was worried that human would kill me. He looked so mean. I didn't even do anything."

Himawari saw the foxes jump to the roof and tried to follow. She took the stairs up to where they were resting and dragged herself over to them. She was so worn out from running, she could barely walk.

"Can you… stop… for just… a sec?" she panted.

"Hi, Himawari. Mizumi just got attacked by a human over in that area. Why'd he do that to her?"

Himawari saw the human she came out of and knew he was someone's sensei. She was also familiar with the area they were referring to.

"That's the training grounds where ninja learn to fight and train to get stronger. The person you possessed was the person that other guy was supposed to fight for their training."

"Oh!" Misuto looked at Mizumi. "So he wasn't trying to kill you. He was just training. You were in the body of the one he was supposed to fight."

"Oh, I get it. So it was just training." Mizumi forgave the incident. "That human's strong. He must train a lot."

Himawari hoped she could round up these two foxes and hopefully get them to listen to her.

"Guys, please listen to me." Himawari moved closer. "I know you're having fun, but you're freaking out the people who live here."

"That's the point."

"But you're scaring them."

"That's part of the fun."

Himawari sighed. "Guys, this is important. You're making a mess of the village. You're leaving trash all over the place, you're eating food from different places and don't even finish it. You're possessing humans and having them take the fall for you."

"What do you mean?" Mizumi looked confused. "We're not letting anyone take the fall."

"Fall for what, anyway?" asked Misuto.

Himawari knew it. They really didn't understand what they were doing.

"When you possess a human and then do the stuff you're doing, you're letting the human get in trouble."

"I don't get it."

"Me, neither."

Himawari had to find a way to explain this.

"Well, see… Humans have to pay for the food they take. If they don't, it's called stealing. So when you take food from a store and don't pay for it with money, the other humans think you're stealing."

"We're not stealing."

"Yeah. No, we're not."

"We found that food."

"Exactly. It was just lying there."

They thought the displays and cases were no different from the offerings they were given. To the foxes, the food was up for grabs. They didn't understand what convenient stores were. The whole concept was lost to them.

"Well, not exactly…" Himawari had to think of a way to explain this so the foxes would understand. If only she knew more about how foxes lived. They seemed pretty sophisticated when she met them in the forest. So much so that she forgot they were wild animals.

The foxes looked up and saw one of their own, running across the rooftops to an unknown location. They wondered aloud where their friend was going and decided to follow. Without even looking at Himawari, they got up and left.

"Wait! Hang on a second!" Himawari ran to the edge of the building and called after them. "Please try to tone it down a bit! Please?"

She had no idea if they heard her. Even if they did, she doubted they would listen.

She sighed and went to go find them.

* * *

"Found him!" Boruto announced Before he pounced on his sensei by the side of the road.

Konohamaru's quick reflexes saved him from a kick in the face. "What do you think you're doing, Boruto?" he asked sharply.

Boruto landed on the ground and looked his sensei over. "So… you don't want me to come at you?"

Konohamaru put his hands on his hips. "No. We aren't training right now."

"Then make up your freaking mind!" Boruto snapped. "One second, you're clawing my eyes out, the next you're running into the village with Chocho's old man, and now you're trying to be all cool. I mean it. Make up your freaking mind!"

Konohamaru looked puzzled. "What do you mean 'clawing out your eyes', Boruto? I haven't been anywhere near you all morning."

"You were in there just a second ago!" Boruto pointed back the way he came. "You were by a pond or whatever and then you started talking to me, then you started scratching me, then you ran off and you're all..!" Boruto put his hands to his head and growled, getting even more worked up than he already was. "Quit giving me crap and make up your freaking mind!"

Konohamaru didn't recall any of that. He remembered briefly being in the training area. Now, suddenly, he was here just outside of it. At first, he thought it was odd. Then he figured he was simply lost in thought. Now he was starting to rethink things.

"You say I was acting weird?"

"Yeah!" Boruto almost screamed at him. He was showing his teeth like a wild animal. "Quit playing with me!"

Sarada showed up and stood between the two of them. "Boruto, stop taking off like that. Sensei, are you ok? Boruto said you were acting weird."

"Was I to you?"

Sarada looked away. "Well, I didn't actually see anything. You took off before I could. Boruto was worried when you were late showing up for training so we went looking for you. We split up, so he found you first. By the time I got there, you had taken off."

"Late for training?" Konohamaru looked at his watch. "It's that late already?"

He was missing the last forty-five minutes of his day. Boruto must have been telling the truth. He was missing time.

"Did I black out or something?" This didn't make any sense.

"People have been acting weird all over the village," said Sarada. "Yesterday and now today. Something's going on. I think it could be the same person from before using a jutsu. We have to find them and tell them to knock it off."

"The same person from yesterday, huh?" Konohamaru thought it wasn't a big deal before, but now that he had been a victim, he was taking this prank a lot more seriously.

The sound of shattering glass brought their attention to a nearby store. The group rushed over and peered inside where they discovered several people, each doing something different.

One person was on the table, knocking gum and mints off a shelf and watching them fall and roll across the floor. One person was pushing a mop bucket across the floor, one foot riding inside the bucket. Two people were jousting with the broom and mop. Someone was throwing merchandise at the person riding the mop bucket. The person on the table started to throw products at the original pitcher. Soon, both of them were throwing things at each other. The one riding the mop bucket crashed into a display case, knocking it over. They grabbed another display for balance and ended up taking it down with them as they fell. The jousters began to sword fight with each other instead. One of them was knocked off their feet and landed in the mop bucket and started to scoot around the floor, pushing off tables and displays to pick up speed which in turn knocked over most of displays.

"What the hell is going on in there?" Konohamaru wondered aloud.

"Sensei, look!" Sarada pointed to someone in the street who was going fishing is a fish tank outside a restaurant. The man pulled out different fish and attempted to eat them while they were still wiggling. The hostess smacked the man with a broom and he tipped over the whole tank where it shattered. The man picked up a fish in his mouth and ran down the street.

"This is weird. What's happening to the villagers?" asked Boruto.

"Stop! Stop!"

Boruto saw his little sister grabbing onto a man's shirt in an attempt to hold him back. Her body leaned in the opposite direction, her heels digging into the ground, but the man kept pulling.

"Please, listen to me! Stop for a sec!"

The man pulled himself free and Himawari landed in the dirt.

"Himawari!" Boruto came rushing over. "Are you ok?"

"I'm ok."

"Did that guy hurt you?"

"No, I'm fine."

Farther down the road, the group heard screaming.

Boruto turned to his sister. "Himawari, go home. It's too dangerous out here."

"But-"

Boruto ran towards the screaming and discovered an art store that was completely overrun with…

"Foxes?"

They were playing in the paints and inks.

It was a new discovery. Having never seen it before, they proceed to play with it, marking up the walls and floor and covering themselves. Everywhere they walked, they left a trail of brightly colored paw prints. They dumped paint on each other and rolled around, enthralled with how their fur changed colors. They rolled over, marking the floor and tables. They covered their paws and wiped them off on each other's fur. One fox decided to use his tail as a paint brush and doddle on the walls. They took supplies off the shelves and dumped them into the paints and watched them change color. Some, discovering how slippery the paint was, knocked over a few cans and went skating. They built towers out of empty cans and other supplies and slid across the paint, knocking them over like bowling pins.

Boruto glared at the foxes. They were destroying the store.

"I'm gonna put a stop to this." Boruto took out a kunai and prepared to enter the store.

Himawari saw what her brother was preparing to do and hurried to stop him.

"Hey, you stupid foxes! Get lost!"

The group of foxes looked up and saw the kunai. Knowing it was a weapon, they scattered.

Boruto tried grabbing one of them by the tail but they were too quick. He tried to grab at least one of them, but they were everywhere, running around faster than he could track. All he saw were colors. By the time things calmed down enough for him to make sense of what was happening, they were gone.

He stumbled out of the store and looked around. He saw two foxes head down a familiar street and pursued them. He knew he could cut them off before they got away.

"Boruto, wait!" Himawari called.

He continued after his target, forcing Himawari to go after him.

* * *

"Seventh! We have a situation in the village!"

Naruto looked up at the man who just entered his office. "What's the problem?"

"We don't know exactly. People are wreaking havoc in the streets. It's chaos!"

Konohamaru entered the office next. "Seventh, we have a situation in the village."

"That's the second time I heard that in ten seconds," said Naruto. "What's up?"

"Several stores have been broken into. People are stealing, people are fighting. People are complaining that their neighbors are acting weird. My students even complained that I was behaving strangely."

"Were you?"

"I don't know. I don't remember it. I'm missing forty-five minutes of my day. Boruto attacked me without reason, I thought. Then he explained that I had attacked him first. The only thing is I don't remember doing that. I was somewhere else then was in another place without knowing how I got there."

Naruto was taking everything they said seriously. "Is Boruto hurt?"

"No, sir." Konohamaru frowned. "Sarada was there, too. And yesterday, she said that people were acting strangely but… But I don't think I was taking her as seriously as I should have. She and Boruto thought it might have been a jutsu of some sort. I agreed. I thought someone was practicing a jutsu and took it out of hand. The problem is, I don't know what kind of jutsu could do such a thing."

"You mean, make people behave oddly?"

"Yes. If it were a mind-manipulation technique, it would explain why people are acting out of character and why no one remembers doing anything weird."

"But you don't think that's it?"

Konohamaru shook his head. "They described it in a different way. Plus, it's multiple people at once."

"Seventh," said the first ninja. "We might have an invasion. We need to find out who's doing this and quickly. It's only a matter of time before someone gets hurt. Your son has already been attacked."

Before Naruto could answer him, Shikamaru came into the office. "Seventh, we have a problem. This village is out of control. People are in a panic. I've been taking reports from different people. Every time I tried to report to you, I get stopped by someone else."

"One thing at a time." Naruto held up his hands. "Alright. Konohamaru said this is a mind-manipulation thing, which would explain why people are acting out of the ordinary. He admitted to attacking Boruto without remembering doing so. I know this makes the situation very serious. Has anyone else been attacked by anyone?"

"No one's been to the hospital," said Shikamaru. "Any injuries are very minor. Most people are just hitting each other with brooms."

"Ok. Konohamaru, when you attacked Boruto, how did you attack him?"

"I don't remember. But he said I was clawing at him. Then I ran off."

"Before you were acting weird, did you see anything?"

Konohamaru shook his head. He had left to report to Naruto before going to the art store so he never saw the foxes inside.

"And it's pretty consistent, right?" Naruto asked the men. "It's all people we know in the village who suddenly start acting strange then return to normal?"

"Yeah. We haven't seen anyone we haven't seen before and the reports confirm that. There are no outsiders."

"You mentioned theft. What's been taken?" Naruto asked.

Shikamaru looked at a piece of paper he had taken notes on. "It's mostly food stores and places like that. In most cases, nothing left the store. People just opened up the product and ate it there then left. The owners find piles of half-eaten foods on the floor. Some foods leave the store but are found in the grass or on the road."

"Only food's been taken?"

"Yeah. Pretty much. All money is accounted for."

What sort of thief would take food but leave the money? If someone was using a jutsu to take control of people's minds, they could have easily forced the clerk to take out the money and hand it over. The fact that no one did this meant this individual had other motives.

Their sole interest seemed to be food. It could have been someone who was starving. Even so, why not take the money? Did they want to cut out the middleman and simply take the food they would have bought with the stolen money?

Something wasn't right here.

"Are all the people violent?" asked Naruto.

"No. Most of the people who are acting strange are just stealing food or running around. Most of them seem quite playful. A lot of them keep talking about playing tag. The only time they become violent is when someone attacks them first. And even then, most of the time, they simply run off. By the time they're found, they've returned to normal."

"Ok." Naruto tried to think. "Anything else?"

"People have been hallucinating," said Shikamaru. "There have been reports of people witnessing moving shadows on the wall and having things pop out at them at night and around corners. Mostly children have complained about that, but some adults are starting to come forward which makes me think it's not a monster under the bed type of deal."

"Just moving shadows and things?"

"Sort of. It scared a few people. Shadows and some people have reported seeing wisps of blue flame."

Naruto's eyes widened. "What did you say?"

"Uh… blue flame?"

Naruto looked away and sat silently.

"Seventh?"

"Have any of these pranks happened in or around households that have pets?"

"Uh… I don't think so. Why?"

Naruto smirked. "I think I know what's going on around here. I'll take care of it myself."

Naruto started to get up but Konohamaru and the first ninja advised him not to. "It's too dangerous. What if you end up being manipulated?"

"I've handled this before. I know what to do." Naruto stopped at the door. "Oh, uh, Shikamaru?"

"Yes?"

"I do need something from you."

"Like a weapon?"

"No, but it will help."

"What?"

Naruto smiled. "Get me a dog."

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10:**

Boruto used the building to his advantage and cut off the two foxes who were trying to flee. He tried to step on one of them while he grabbed the other. He managed to get one fox but the other one got away. The fox in his arms struggled and kicked. Finally, it squeezed out of his grip and ran.

"Hey!" He started to case it, then discovered that the fox's path was blocked by a long arm.

Mitsuki cut off the fox and as it ran somewhere else, he stretched his arm in that direction. The fox was forced to run back towards Boruto.

Boruto almost lost his concentration when he saw his friend covered in ink and colorful paw prints.

Their eyes met and Mitsuki said, "Don't ask."

Boruto focused on the fox instead. The small animal skidded on the dirt and almost slammed into Boruto's leg but stopped short and tried to run somewhere else.

"Oh, no, you don't!" Boruto prepared to throw his weapon.

"No!" Himawari threw herself into Boruto to stop him. "Don't hurt him!"

The ink-covered fox on the ground was Koeda.

"Himawari, stop it! Go home!" He didn't want Himawari to see him hurt the fox. He knew she was sensitive and didn't want to put her through that. He wouldn't kill it if he could help it, but if it was a rabid animal or dangerous, he wouldn't have much of a choice.

"No!" she begged. "Please, don't hurt him! Please!"

"Himawari, it's a menace. It's running amok in the village."

"Yeah, but…" She knew in her heart that Koeda wasn't bad. Not her friend. He put his trust in her. He helped them scare off that wild boar on the way home. Someone who didn't care or wanted to hurt them wouldn't have done such a thing. He protected them.

She couldn't condone what Koeda and the other foxes were doing, but she understood. After talking with them, however briefly, she knew. They were just excited. They didn't intend to cause all this damage.

She couldn't let her brother hurt them based on a misunderstanding.

Boruto couldn't fight like this. She was holding him too tight. His only option was to shove her away but he didn't want to do that. He didn't want to push his sister down.

Koeda started to run elsewhere but Sarada punched the ground in front of him and he stopped. She held back but it was still enough to leave a hole in the ground.

Koeda looked around at the humans surrounding him. The female in front of him, the pale human on his right and the male behind him along with Himawari. He knew Himawari was trying to stop them but it looked like the male was holding her back.

These humans were a threat.

"Fox Fire."

His low mumble and the swishing of his tail brought forth a massive flame which engulfed him and grew.

The children stepped back when they saw the mass take shape and became giant fox. It growled at them and stomped its feet.

Himawari could tell that it was just a cloak. The real Koeda was inside the illusion. While everyone was looking up, Koeda's real head was lower to the ground. Only she could tell where he truly was.

Sarada tried to punch it but her hand never reached. The fox moved out of the way. She tried again and missed. Koeda was bending the illusion out of the way so she wouldn't catch on. If she landed a direct hit, her hand would go right through it.

Sarada slipped and fell in front of Boruto.

The fox crouched low, preparing to jump.

Boruto tried to get Himawari off so he could defend Sarada but she refused to budge.

The fox pounced, mouth agape.

A hand reached inside the illusion and grabbed Koeda by the scruff of his neck.

The illusion faded away and everyone could see reality.

The Hokage was holding onto Koeda in his right hand while holding onto a second one in his left.

"Whoa, there!" Naruto said loudly. "Fun's over, you guys. I can't have you scaring my villagers like this. And you guys could use a bath. Is that paint?"

"Dad!"

"Daddy!"

"Seventh!"

Naruto turned and smiled at the children. "Hey, guys. You did well. I'll take it from here."

"Seventh!" Shikamaru called. "The dogs are rounding up the foxes as we speak. That was a good call, using them to track them down."

"Well, kitsune are afraid of dogs and dogs can detect kitsune so I figured it would work."

"Kitsune?" Boruto looked at the foxes his father was holding.

"How'd you know we were dealing with kitsune and not a jutsu?" Shikamaru asked.

Naruto smiled. "Well, having been one before, I've picked up a few tricks. The blue flame was a dead giveaway. Plus, these guys avoided any place that had dogs, so that was another clue. All their techniques also sounded like fox fire and kitsune magic. I put it all together and here we are."

Shikamaru stepped closer and frowned at the struggling kitsune. "These guys made one hell of a ruckus. They've been troublesome from the moment they got here."

"They were just pranking people. It's what kitsune do."

"Even so, they turned this place upside-down! All those stores and shops and people and everything else. They're pests!"

Naruto gave the kitsune a closer look.

"We need to deal with them. You know that."

"Nah," said Naruto. "I think Ryosuke will want to deal with them."

The kitsune stopped struggling. "You know Leader?"

"I should. We're good friends. I'm Naruto. He's probably told you about me."

"You're him?!"

"You're Naruto?!"

He grinned. "Yup."

Shikamaru sighed. "Friends or not, these guys made a huge mess of the place. They need to be dealt with. They're clearly bad foxes. Like those ones from the past."

Naruto shook his head. "No. Not these guys."

"Naruto, they wrecked up the place. They stole. They used their powers on the people and scared everybody."

"Yeah, but these guys didn't know what they were doing."

"How can you say that? Even Ryosuke's group knew better."

Naruto kept his eyes on the kitsune as he addressed Shikamaru. "Back when I first met Ryosuke and the others, I was a teenager. They showed me the ropes. They were good to me. And they were bigger than these guys I'm holding. I kind of assumed Ryosuke and most of his group were around my age. Maybe a little older. But these guys. These guys are smaller. Which means they're younger."

"So?" asked Shikamaru.

"So it matters. If Ryosuke and the others were teenagers, then that means these guys are younger than that." Naruto suspected it before. Now that he had gotten a good look at them, he was certain. "They're young. I'd estimate they're around five years old."

"They're five?"

"In human years, yes. That's how old they would be. Years alive would be a little different, I think. Kitsune age differently. But yeah. I guess these guys around about five."

"That doesn't excuse what they did."

"Perhaps. But it certainly explains it."

These young kitsune were a little different from older ones. They were quick to trust. Like most young children, they followed their impulses and did as they pleased on a whim. They threw caution to the wind for the sole purpose of having fun and doing as they pleased. They didn't think about consequences. Such mentality made the kitsune very difficult to reason with. They did not yet understand.

"They're too young to fully grasp certain things, Shikamaru," Naruto said calmly. "They didn't realize what they were doing. They didn't understand they were doing anything wrong."

"How can they not? They were stealing from stores."

"Not to them. Wild animals think differently. Kitsune might be a little more sophisticated, but they're still animals. They find their food in the wild. They hunt. They forage. The offerings they get are displayed out in the forest just like the displays in a store. They thought it was up for grabs. Kitsune, like a lot of animals don't have a concept of money. They didn't know they were stealing."

Shikamaru thought it was obvious, but even he knew animals had a different mindset than humans. It was a hard thing to remember when facing an animal gifted with speech. It was easy to lose sight of the fact that they were still animals.

"But they should still know better. When I was five, even I understood what stealing was."

"But you weren't an animal living in a mountain. Don't let their ability to hold a conversation fool you. They're still animals."

"I get that. But the older kitsune that you befriended still understood right from wrong. Shouldn't they have taught their young the same thing?"

Naruto tried to explain. "When you were a little kid, you understood things that most children still struggle with, right? You were able to understand complicated things because you were a genius. But the other kids didn't match your intellect, so for them it must have been harder. When you tried to explain things to them, they probably gave you confused looks, am I right?"

Shikamaru remembered his childhood well. His genius also equipped him with a very good memory in addition to an eye for detail. He remembered a time when children shunned others because of an outbreak of coodies. He knew there was no such thing but the ostracism was real. Whether the other children believed in coodies was unknown to him. He tried questioning the other children as to why they ran from a simple touch but they didn't give him an answer. He even tried to reason with them that there was no such thing and that they didn't even have proof of anything similar being real. Instead of accepting his logic, they said that he must have had a disease, too and ran from him. A week later, no one remembered the outbreak and had moved on to something else.

He couldn't understand why the children behaved that way, but it was a part of childhood. A part he didn't understand too well but to them it was easy. Maybe he was too smart for his own good back then. He missed out on a lot of fun because he didn't go with the flow.

Even now he didn't think he was missing out on anything. The children were foolish. Simply as that. There was no point to their game other than to tease one another.

Maybe his intellect did deprive him of certain things in addition to benefiting him. He understood what adults told him much easier than other children his age. Where they struggled, he excelled. He could reason much better than other children and understood certain concepts as well.

But he was still a child. Even though he understood certain concepts better than others, it did not make him more understanding. To those who didn't understand him, he thought of them as stupid, not taking into consideration that they were still developing.

Unbeknownst to him, he was still doing it, only to animals this time. Animal children.

While Shikamaru pondered over the possibility of him being inconsiderate to these young foxes, Naruto focused his attention on the one in his hand.

"You didn't come here on your own," he said, thoughtfully. "Someone had to show you the way."

Remembering the prince's party, Naruto turned to his children. Considering the timeline, it all made sense. One of them was responsible.

Himawari stepped forward, gripping the front of her blouse nervously. "I did it," she said avoiding his eyes. "It was me. I did it. I brought them here."

Boruto didn't know when she had done this without him knowing. Then he remembered the bag she didn't want to let out of her sight.

She must have wandered off that night and stumbled across those kitsune while he was inside the palace wallowing. If only he had paid more attention to her, this wouldn't have happened.

"I'm sorry, Daddy." Her lower lip trembled. "Koeda said that he always wanted to see you since he heard stories so I brought him here to meet you in person. I didn't know he would bring all his friends and that they would cause trouble."

Naruto smiled gently. "It's ok. I'm not mad at you."

"You're not?"

"No, of course not. Besides, they didn't cause that much damage, all things considered."

"I think you and I are seeing a different village, Seventh," muttered Sarada.

Shikamaru stepped closer to Naruto. "In any case, we need to do something about them."

Naruto smiled. "Actually, I don't think we do."

"What?"

"Well, if I know anything, I'm pretty sure he's noticed by now that part of his pack is missing and has coming looking for them. In which case, I say we let Ryosuke deal with them."

As soon as he said this. An orange blur came from overhead and landed in front of Naruto and the others.

The large fox lifted his head and looked at the Hokage with warm green eyes. He held his five tails off the ground which sent small wisps of flame into the air. He slowly turned his body and bowed his head to Naruto who bowed back.

"Looking for these?" Naruto asked him as he raised his head.

"I noticed them missing and followed their scent here."

"You'll be happy to know they're all unharmed… Ryosuke."

The larger fox smiled at his old friend. "I'm sorry for any trouble they've put you through. But these are the actions of children. Please treat them as such."

Naruto smiled back. "They're not my kids and I'm not their leader. I don't think it's my place to punish them anyway. That's your territory. So I figured I'd hand them off to you when you arrived to collect them."

"Thank you, my friend."

Boruto had only ever seen Ryosuke at a distance at night. Seeing him so close in broad daylight gave him a completely different look. At night, Ryosuke looked so mysterious and majestic. In the light, he looked powerful but no less majestic. Such a sight. It left him speechless.

He tore his eyes away to see Sarada's reaction to Ryosuke's form. She was in no better condition than Boruto. She couldn't even stand up. She could only stare at him with wide eyes and trembled when he looked at her.

It wasn't fear that had her shaking. It was the awe of his presence. It was like coming face-to-face with a powerful spirit or a king.

Ryosuke looked at Shikamaru and nodded his head in greeting. "Good to see you again."

Shikamaru wordlessly nodded back. He had yet to see Ryosuke in his five-tailed form. It was a little overwhelming. Seeing him as a three-tails was stunning enough, but two extra tails left him speechless.

"I'll release these guys into your care, then," said Naruto as he set down the two kitsune in his hands.

They didn't run off or fuss. Not with Ryosuke standing above them.

No longer in shock, Shikamaru managed to form enough words to speak his mind to the elder fox.

"Far be it from me to criticize, but as a leader, I'm surprised it took you this long to notice they were missing."

Naruto wanted to smack him but did nothing, letting Ryosuke defend himself.

"The young ones travel into the forest often to hunt. It is not uncommon to lose sight of them for several hours. If they traveled at dawn, that is when most of us are asleep. If they left the den in the early hours, it is likely no one would have seen them leave. Not even their own mother. I noticed they were missing sooner than their parents."

"Is that saying much?"

"I was doing business elsewhere," Ryosuke explained. "I visit the spirit realm often so they must have left during the time I spent away."

Naruto turned to Shikamaru. "He takes care of things there, too. Keeping the peace among spirits and visited those who have departed. Stuff like that. He told me."

Shikamaru didn't look impressed.

"In any case, I rushed right over, certain I'd find them here. Thank you for not harming the children."

Shikamaru had nothing to say. He wanted to point out all the damage the young foxes caused but he thought better about it. Something told him Ryosuke already knew.

"We were just playing," said Koeda. "We didn't do anything bad."

"We were invited," piped up the second pup.

Ryosuke looked down at them. "You are still young. You must let your mothers know where you are going if you are venturing away from the mountain."

"Sorry…"

Koeda was a little more confrontational than his fellow fox, wanting to defend himself. "We were just playing," he insisted. "Himawari said we could. She brought me here. We're friends."

"I am not upset with her," said Ryosuke.

"Are you just upset because we left without telling nobody?" asked Koeda. "We're not allowed into the town back home and there's no rules saying we can't play with the humans in other places if we're invited over."

"You call what you did back there playing?" Shikamaru said in irritation.

Ryosuke ignored him. "Koeda… Did the humans play with you?"

"Oh, yeah!" he chirped, smiling. "We played chasing games and everything."

"And they have lots of food for us to eat, too," said the other fox. "This place is great!"

Ryosuke did not smile at their cheerful tones. "I see. Did the humans give you permission to eat the food you found?"

"Yeah. They left it there."

"Outside? Or in a building?"

The foxes looked at each other. "Well, most of it was inside."

"And after you took it, they chased you?"

"Yeah! It was fun."

Ryosuke reasoned with them in a way a young fox would understand. "I do not think those humans were playing games with you. I think they were chasing you because they were upset."

"Why?"

"You ate their food."

"Nu-uh!" protested the other fox. "The food was just sitting there. For anybody."

"Not to humans," said Ryosuke. "If humans leave food in a building, it means they are not offering it to you. It was not yours to take."

"Then why was it sitting there?"

"For the other humans. That's what they do. Instead of burying their food for later, humans stack them up inside buildings to either eat later or offer to trade for something else."

Koeda and the other fox now understood. "Ohh! So… So then… We were taking their food and that's why they chased us."

Ryosuke nodded. "Yes."

"Oh…" Koeda looked sad. "So then… So then we were stealing…"

Ryosuke nodded again.

Koeda looked at Himawari and hung his head. "I'm sorry…"

"I believe Naruto also needs to hear your apology."

Koeda turned and lowered his head to Naruto. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."

Naruto forgave him instantly. "It's ok. I understand why you were confused. Humans are very different from foxes."

"This is another reason why you shouldn't have come here without permission. You are not familiar with human customs," said Ryosuke.

Koeda kept his head down.

Himawari felt terrible. Koeda was in trouble because she brought him into the village and the village also suffered for her actions.

"It's not all his fault. I invited him," Himawari said without looking at Ryosuke directly. "Please don't punish him too much. I said he could…"

"But you did not know he would bring his friends, did you?" asked Naruto. "And he also did not tell you what he was planning on doing, did he?"

She shook her head. "No…" she said quietly.

"The blame is not solely on one person," said Ryosuke.

"Exactly," agreed Naruto. "Himawari did not know what she was doing and neither did Koeda and the others. This is just a misunderstanding that happened with the best of intentions."

Shikamaru did not agree with Naruto being so lenient. To him, both sides were clearly in the wrong. Both should have known better.

But Naruto understood. Himwari did not think to ask Koeda what he was planning in detail because he merely wanted to see the village and meet its leader. His version of play was different from what a human would consider playtime. She did not know this is what he meant by 'playing' with the villagers. Her inviting him to come see the village and telling him he could have fun opened the door to chaos because Koeda misinterpreted what she meant. He was unfamiliar with human customs and had all the curiosity and playfulness of an excited child in a new playground.

This was nothing short of a misunderstanding between two different species. Neither side was the enemy and neither intentionally did anything wrong.

Therefore, Naruto would not dish out any harsh punishments. He wanted to be considerate and fair.

Naruto put a hand on his daughter's head. "It's ok, Himawari. I'm not mad at you."

She gave him a tearful look. "You're not? You sure?"

"You didn't know he would bring his friends and do all this. He didn't mean any harm and neither did you." Naruto smiled. "Besides, I got to see an old friend again. There's nothing to forgive as far as I'm concerned."

Shikamaru sighed. "They're getting away too easily," he mumbled.

Naruto overheard his remark. Did Shikamaru really not remember what it was like being a kid? Did he not understand that different people had different outlooks and customs? He thought Shikamaru of all people would understand that. After all, when they were young, Naruto was the one being constantly reminded how to speak to a royal figure. Sakura gave him several painful reminders about his rudeness and poor conduct when in front of a princess or a king.

"I'll gather up the others," announced Ryosuke, "and we'll be off."

Naruto looked at his children and at Shikamaru. He looked at the young foxes and at the large one leading them away.

"Wait," Naruto called after him. "Ryosuke."

He stopped and turned his head. "Yes?"

Naruto jogged over to him and leaned down. "Can I speak to you for a second?"

Ryosuke faced him wordlessly.

"I want to ask you something."

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11:**

"How could you be so dumb?" Boruto asked his sister. "Bring a wild animal here like that. Didn't you know what would happen?"

Himawari started to cry.

"Wait, wait! I didn't mean you were dumb. No, no! I just… I'm sorry. I…" Boruto didn't intend for her to cry. "I just meant, he shouldn't have tricked you like that. I know you said he's your friend but he seems pretty mean to me. Not telling you and all."

Himawari shook her head. "I should have asked more questions. I didn't know that's what he meant by playing with the other villagers. I just wanted to bring him home to surprise Daddy. And Koeda wanted so much to meet him. I didn't want to let him down."

"Yeah, but…" Boruto thought his sister made a stupid decision, but he was foolish, too. He left her alone at the party and wasn't more suspicious when she clung to that bag like it was full of buried treasure. She merely wanted to give their father a nice surprise and give a gift to a new friend. She was trying to be kind.

"I hope Koeda and the others are going to be ok," she said over her bowl of soup. "He looked so sad when they left yesterday."

"He should be sad. Look at all the damage he caused."

"But he didn't mean it," said Himawari. "You heard Daddy. Koeda is just five years old. He's younger than me."

"But his talking skills are on par with yours and mine. Five or not, I'm sensing that he has the intellect of someone our age."

"Emotions of a child but the intellect of an adult," Hinata said with a smile. "I wonder if Shikamaru felt the same way when he was growing up. Or even Neji…"

Boruto tried to finish his breakfast in a hurry. He had a full day planned of video-games and training ahead of him.

"Thanks for breakfast, Mom. See you later!" He pushed away from the table and hurried outside.

"Don't be out too late, Boruto. I'm making steak tonight."

"I'll be there!"

Boruto ran across the street, searching for his friends. "Shikadai! Mitsuki! Where are you guys?!" he shouted.

"Don't shout so loud," lectured Shikadai as he walked beside his father. "You'll wake up the whole neighborhood."

"So what if I do? It's morning."

"Consider those who are nursing off a hangover from binge drinking last night."

"Like the ones who drank to cope with what happened to them yesterday," added his father. "The whole fox incident."

Shikadai shrugged. "I didn't think it was a big deal. I could have handled it pretty well."

Shikamaru looked down at him. "Oh?"

"Yeah," added Boruto. "Where were you when it all went down, anyway? I didn't even see you."

"The mark of a good ninja."

"Oh, don't tease."

Shikamaru sighed. "It's over now, so let's get back to work. You have a lot of training to do."

Shikadai scoffed. "The exams are ages away, Dad. I don't have to do anything for a while."

"Don't train the night before. Same rule for studying."

Shikadai shrugged. "It's a pain either way."

"I bet you couldn't do anything against those fox things that showed up yesterday," Boruto taunted his friend. "That's why you were nowhere to be found."

"I was around. Where were you?"

"In the heat of it all. I was fighting one."

"I heard the Seventh came along to save your ass. Had two of them in his hands while you were on the ground."

"That's not what happened at all!"

"It's only part true," said Shikamaru. "Yes, the Hokage did have two foxes in hand, but Boruto was defending two people at the time. They both did a tremendous job. No need to butt heads about it."

A massive gust of wind tore through the street like a cyclone and tossed Shikadai into his father. Boruto braced himself and covered his head with both arms.

"What the hell was that?"

Shikamaru ran in the direction of the blast. The children followed him.

They heard screaming.

Shikamaru emerged and stood in the middle of the next street, looking around. A woman ran passed him looking frightened. He saw her being chased by what appeared to be a bear. Once the woman was out of sight, the bear morphed into a small, laughing fox.

"Them again?!" Boruto said as soon as he saw it. "I thought Dad got rid of them all."

"I guess not all of them wanted to go willingly."

The fox stopped laughing and jumped, avoiding an attack from above. Sai landed in a crouching position, kunai tip stuck in the dirt.

"Missed it."

The fox cackled and led them down another street. Someone else screamed.

"Inojin!" Sai ran after the fox.

The others followed.

The fox was on Inojin's head, preventing him from launching any attacks. Inojin stumbled and tried to throw the fox off his shoulders. He finally managed to toss it to the ground and tried to stab it. The fox jumped and landed closer to the group.

"I got it," said Shikadai and tried stretching his shadow a far as it would go to snare the fox.

His shadow reached but was unsuccessful in trapping it. The shadow wiggled and twitched and the fox ran off.

"I don't get it. Why didn't it work?" Shikadai looked frightened. His jutsu had never done that before.

"Jutsu won't work on kitsune," said Shikamaru. "I've crossed paths with them before."

Inojin held up two kunai. "Then we can use these to fight them." He ran after the small fox, but it had scurried into a crevice too small from him to reach.

Then another fox showed up. This one bigger and sporting two tails.

"Could that be the parent?" Shikadai questioned upon seeing the new fox.

"It doesn't matter." Boruto took out a kunai himself. "I'll get it."

The fox jumped, avoiding the weapon.

"Be careful, Boruto," warned Shikamaru. "If it has more tails, it's more powerful."

"I can do it." Boruto saw the fox leap from the roof and soar straight at him. Boruto held up his weapon.

"No!" Shikamaru shoved Boruto out of the way.

"I had it! Why did you-"

"Curse!" The fox's paw touched Shikamaru's chest. Then it jumped and did the same thing to Sai. "Curse!"

"Ah..!"

Shikamaru's body began to glow. He locked eyes with his son for just a moment then was completely engulfed.

"Dad!" Inojin shrieked as he watched his father disappear in the strange light consuming his body.

The children watched helplessly as the adults began to shrink.

When the light faded, they got to see Shikamaru and Sai in their new furry forms.

"Wha..?" Shikamaru looked up rather than down at his son. Then he looked at his body. "What..?!"

He had paws.

"Huh?!" Sai was seeing the same thing. "I'm a…"

"A fox!" gasped Inojin. "Dad, you're a fox!"

Shikamaru and Sai looked at each other. They had both been transformed into foxes. They mirrored each other's wide-eyed expressions and furry faces perfectly.

Inojin fell to his knees, looking at his father. On all fours, he was at eye level with his parent. "Dad..?"

Sai looked at him. "Inojin… I…"

"You can still talk," he realized. "I can understand you."

"D- Dad…" Shikadai looked at his own father. "Is that you? Is that really you?"

Shikamaru looked at his paws and tail. "I'm afraid so." He sighed. "This is troublesome."

Boruto overcame his shock and looked at the roof. The two-tailed fox turned and fled as soon as Boruto spotted it.

"I'll get that fox!" Boruto ran after it as fast as he could.

Sai looked at Shikamaru. "We have to find the Hokage."

Shikamaru nodded back. "Right."

The two stood up on their four legs and took off. It was shaky going but they were still fast.

"Wait! Dad, wait!"

"Aw, crap!" wailed Shikadai. "This is not good. Dad's a fox!"

"Mine, too!"

"Yeah, but this is bad for another reason. Boruto took off after one of them. He's got weapons and is determined to hunt down these things. What if he mistakes one of our dads for a real fox?"

Inojin grabbed the sides of his head and wailed. "Ohh! This is bad! This is really bad!"

"We have to stop him!"

* * *

Boruto caught up to the two-tails and threw his weapon at it. The kunai went right through its back and into the ground. It was an illusion. Boruto stood and looked around for another fox, hoping the next one would be real.

Instead, he spotted his father. "Dad!"

Naruto looked up. "The kitsune are back."

"I know! One of them turned Shikadai and Inojin's dads into foxes!"

Naruto looked troubled. "A kitsune curse."

"You know what it is, then?"

"Sure do. I've dealt with these guys before. A lot of them are my friends but we've had to deal with some bad ones in the past, too."

"Then these must be the bad ones." Boruto took out two new kunai. "I'll put a stop to them once and for all."

Naruto grabbed his shoulder. "No, Boruto! You can't."

"I'm strong enough. I can do this."

"No, I mean-"

Boruto had already taken off. He spotted another fox and went after it.

Along the way, he ran into Sarada who was chasing the same fox.

"Boruto! Wait!" came Inojin's voice. "Stop!"

Boruto looked back and the fox was gone. "What'd you do that for? I had it!"

"Boruto, listen to me. We-"

"Boruto!" Naruto landed behind his son. "You ran off before I could tell you. It's not about your strength. There's a reason you can't kill these kitsune."

Finally listening, Boruto turned. "What do you mean?"

"If Shikamaru and Sai have both been transformed into foxes then you risk accidentally injuring or killing them."

"That's what we've been trying to tell you," panted Inojin. "Our dads look the same as these other foxes. If we can't tell them apart, then how do we know you're not hunting our dads?"

Boruto hadn't thought of that. "Easy. I'll ask them if they are. They can still talk."

"But, Boruto," said Naruto, "kitsune are tricky. They can disguise their voices and change shape. Simply asking one of them won't be enough."

Boruto thought. "Then how do I know you're not a fox pretending to be my dad? You could be feeding me false information."

Naruto folded his arms. "Your mother's name is Hinata and you have a little sister named Himawari and her birthday is in six months."

"Ok, checks out."

"If a fox can do that, how are we supposed to find them?" asked Sarada.

"We'll just corner a fox and ask it some questions and if it doesn't answer correctly, then we wipe it out."

"Boruto, the fox you ask could be another villager which means they wouldn't know the answer either," pointed out Sarada. "It's already been proven that they can turn people into foxes, so how do we know they haven't done this to other humans?"

"Hm."

"There's another reason you can't kill them, aside from some of them being my friends," said Naruto. "If you end up killing the fox that cursed your parents, then the curse cannot be lifted. They'll be stuck as foxes permanently."

"What?!" the children shouted.

"The kitsune has to be alive and uninjured in order to reverse the curse." Naruto looked over his shoulder. "I have to go. There are things happening all over the village. I have to see to it."

"Wait!" Sarada called after him. "You're leaving us? But we have questions!"

"Stick together and remember what I told you. Do not kill any kitsune. No matter what!" Naruto disappeared in a flash.

The small group turned to each other with worried looks. "What do we do now?"

Naruto reached the gate to the village and ran into the woods.

"That was a lie," came the beast's voice. "You just lied to your son and those other children."

Naruto smirked.

"If a kitsune is killed, their curse is automatically reversed."

"I know."

Kurama growled. "Then why'd you say that?"

"To protect my friends." Naruto slowed to a stop and faced the village. "I asked Ryosuke to do me a favor and he agreed on the condition that none of his foxes be harmed."

Kurama snorted. "Putting the village at risk to teach those kids a lesson. I must be rubbing off on you."

"I have other reasons."

"Naruto!"

He turned and saw two foxes stumble up to him. Even as foxes, Naruto knew who they were. The angry shouting was a dead giveaway but it was more than just their voices.

Shikamaru stood on a rock and gave him a sour look. "Naruto, this wasn't part of the agreement."

"You never said we would get turned into foxes ourselves," complained Sai.

Naruto smiled. "I asked them to do it when you weren't around."

"What? Why would you do that?" Shikamaru asked fiercely. "We arranged for this whole thing to happen in order to test their skills. Why did we have to get turned into foxes? Just to add to the danger? To make them think?"

"More than that," answered Naruto. "I've actually wanted to do this for a long time. Back then I wanted to do it because I thought it would be fun for us all to play together as foxes. But now I did it for other reasons."

"Which are?"

Naruto gave Shikamaru a firm but gentle look. "Training."

"Hm?"

"You guys need training. Not ninja training, but it should help with your ninja skills as well."

Sai looked confused. "In addition to ninja skills? Then that means there's another reason for this training. What is it?"

"To help you."

"That's obvious," said Sai. "But help us do what?"

"That's up to you. It's whatever the training helps you do."

They exchanged looks. "That doesn't make any sense," said Shikamaru.

Naruto sighed. "I told you guys about when I was transformed into a kitsune the first time, right?"

"Yeah."

"It was a long time ago but the things I learned have stayed with me." Naruto closed his eyes, fond memories returning. "What the foxes taught me were things I could apply to myself as a human and as a human being."

"There's a difference?"

He nodded. "It wasn't just the lessons they taught me. It was being with them and learning who they were and what they were about. Simply being with them was a learning experience. Not just for learning about kitsune but also about learning about myself and what things mean to me."

He remembered seeing Ryosuke cry as they sat on the mountain that night. To this day, he remembered every tear on his face vividly.

"They did not have a leader at the time. Ryosuke was the most qualified but he refused to rule them. He did not want to lead because he was afraid. He was worried he would become corrupt and they would suffer for it. He was worried about this because another fox had betrayed them when he got his second tail and did everything he could to destroy them and the humans. I told Ryosuke that that fox was already bad and was using his extra tail as an excuse. It wasn't the power that corrupted him. He was already corrupted. He hated them from the start."

Naruto understood Ryosuke's fear. He believed that Ryosuke was too kind to become corrupted and told him this. So far, the kitsune lived peacefully on the mountain and the humans were not bothered by them in the slightest.

"He finally became a two-tails and became their leader. Not for the power or his own selfish desires. He did it for them. His selfish wish was to remain as he was and not have power. He gave that up for their sake. He did it to protect them."

"What does that matter?" asked Shikamaru.

"What Ryosuke said and did made me wonder what kind of Hokage I wanted to be," Naruto admitted. "Back when I was a kid, I wanted to be Hokage to show everyone in the village what I was made of so they would all be sorry they treated me like crap. So they would have to show me some respect."

It was revenge at the time. Just a child's selfish desire for attention.

"When I went out on missions and learned more about ninja and what we were about, I started to rethink what I wanted to do as Hokage. I said that I would change the rules so things would be better for everyone. So we wouldn't be just tools."

Sai blinked. He remembered what his training was like and what he had been taught all his life. And how everything changed when he met Naruto.

"When I met Ryosuke, I started to think about the position as Hokage even more." Naruto opened his eyes and looked down. "I realized I had to do what was right and in the best interest of others. It wasn't about what I wanted, but what they needed. Ryosuke taught me that."

So many people influenced him in his life. People who helped shape him into the person he was today and the Hokage he became. Ryosuke was one of them. He learned a lot from his animal friend. They learned a lot from each other.

"More than anything, I treasure his friendship. But I'll never forget the lessons he taught me. Or the questions I asked myself." Naruto sighed. "My actions are my own, but I can't ignore certain influences. He made me question myself and that wasn't a bad thing. It made me think. I realized I still had a long way to go to become Hokage. I still had to discover what kind of Hokage I wanted to be and what the village needed me to be."

It was best for him and for others.

Naruto turned around and put his hands on his hips. "So… I thought maybe experiencing life as a kitsune for a little bit might do you guys some good. Maybe you'll learn something you never thought you needed to know."

Or remember what they had forgotten.

Shikamaru frowned. "So this whole thing was on purpose. Teaching them a lesson and us at the same time. What a pain."

"Don't worry. I got plenty of tutors for you to learn from."

Shikamaru and Sai turned. Three foxes were waiting for them among the trees.

"You have got to be kidding," moaned Shikamaru.

"As long as you're foxes, you might as well learn to act like 'em."

Shikamaru sighed, seeing that he didn't have much of a choice.

It was for the best, he realized. He wouldn't know how to survive as a fox without help and the kitsune who put him under this spell was nowhere to be found so he wouldn't be able to change back anytime soon. It was either learn or suffer.

Shikamaru and Sai approached the group and introduced themselves.

"I'm Seki, this is my brother Reki and that's Aurora."

Shikamaru had encountered Seki before but it had been a while.

Aurora motioned for them to follow. "Let's get started."

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12:**

Stock still, Boruto stared ahead at the Leaf Village, taking in the eerie normality of the people.

A few minutes ago, a crash would sound and someone would scream. Now everything had settled, similarly to a schoolyard scuffle after a teacher announced their presence. And similar to the schoolyard, though everyone went about their business, animosity hung in the air, the matter not yet settled to the instigator's satisfaction.

The village looked like it had regained its normality but Boruto knew better. He knew the kitsune were making themselves scarce so they wouldn't be easily found.

Knowing and solving were two different things, however. Boruto knew something was wrong but didn't know how to go about it. To make matters worse, the entire village being cloaked in a mask of usual business gave him an unsettling feeling.

It felt as if something would pop out at any given moment, like walking through a haunted house at an amusement park. He knew and the anticipation was eating away at him. He wanted it to happen already so he didn't have to be on such high alert.

The two fox fathers had vanished inexplicably as did the rest of the kitsune. No one was being startled by a sudden burst or phantom. Yet Boruto was expecting something to happen any second now. He wanted it to happen just so he had some clue on where to go and what to do.

Where? When? What?

Enough of the normal village atmosphere. Reveal the truth. The matter wasn't over, yet the village was pretending it was. He wanted something to scamper by so he had something to chase. Something to know.

"Boruto."

He had been standing perfectly still, staring into the village for several minutes and it was causing his already anxious friends to grow more concerned.

"Boruto, we need a plan," said Sarada.

He ignored her, still staring. If he looked away for even a second, he might miss something.

"Boruto."

The hand on his shoulder spun him around. "What?"

"We can't just stand here. We have to do something."

Boruto shrugged her hand off. "I know that."

"They're not going to suddenly dash across the street."

"How do you know?"

"Even if they do, we need a plan."

Boruto looked back down the street, eyeing each villager coming in and out of the different shops along the street.

"What we need is more people," said Shikadai.

"Won't that make the situation worse?" asked Inojin. "Three-man squads are essential. Any more than that runs the risk of being discovered and arguments."

"Yeah, unless we're in a situation like this one." Shikadai tried to get Boruto's attention but his words only ended up bouncing off his back. "Clearly, there are more of them than there are of us. Which means we'll need more people to help us fight."

"But how do we fight them without hurting them?" asked Inojin. "You heard the Hokage. We can't change our dads back if the kitsune are injured or dead. Some of our friends might not know how to hold back. Besides, depending on who we ask, they might not care because they don't have anything to lose."

"How do you mean?" asked Sarada.

"Like Iwabe, for example. Do you really expect him to hold back in a situation like this, especially if no one he cares about has been transformed into a fox? He might wipe them out and say 'who cares' since it's the fastest way to stop them. He doesn't strike me as the type to resolve things but to win."

"Iwabe wouldn't do that," Boruto said, turning around. "Attitude or not, there's no way he would risk someone's life like that, you know. He wouldn't let your dads suffer just because they're not his. There's no way."

Inojin looked away with a sigh. "Even if he only injures them a little, it might not be too bad having a fox for a dad. He probably can't be a ninja anymore and it would be difficult to explain to Mom but I guess I could get used to it." He was already planning on the worst-case scenario, revealing how little faith he had that they could successfully capture the kitsune without injury.

He wasn't just basing this off his impression of Iwabe but the fact that Boruto's first instinct was to capture the foxes using kunai. If their little group couldn't handle this, there was little chance they could convince a larger group whose members included those who did not know how to hold back and a certain green beast who faltered under pressure in addition to absurd strength.

None of this contributed to a successful mission whereby no one would be injured.

"Our dads aren't going to stay foxes forever," assured Shikadai. "We might have a quirky bunch but we need them to succeed. More specifically, we need their skills."

Now Boruto was interested and forgot all about monitoring the village from his vantage-point. There might be a better way to win this.

"We just found out a little while ago that kitsune aren't effected by jutsu. My dad told me just before he turned into a fox. That means skills like my shadow and Inojin's Mind Transfer Jutsu won't work on them. If they did, it would have been ideal for us to round them all up unharmed."

"Which means we'll have to stick to things like Taijutsu," added Sarada. "But that runs the risk of hurting them accidentally."

"Right, but I'm wondering to what extent jutsu won't affect them," said Shikadai.

"How's that?"

"I'm wondering if we can use jutsu indirectly on them. After all, how can kitsune immunity effect something like an Expansion Jutsu?"

Sarada nodded. "You're right. Chocho's skills could come in handy for something like this. She can block their path or just grab them."

"That's why I think we need to find the others and get their help on this. They might have other ideas that could help us, too."

Sarada straightened up. "Ok," she said, clenching her fist. "Let's find everyone and get their help."

It didn't take very long to round up their friends as several of them had been alerted to the strange goings-on in the village and came to investigate only to find the people resuming their usual lives. Some dismissed this while others were suspicious.

When Boruto and the others showed up, the majority of their friends were put on the same page and began their discussion.

"So that's the situation, huh?" said Iwabe. "Never heard of such a thing. This for real?"

"It's real alright. I saw it with my own eyes."

"Your dads were really turned into foxes just like that?" asked Denki.

Shikadai and Inojin nodded. "Yeah. It was nuts."

"Though not that nuts considering it looked kind of like a transformation jutsu only they couldn't change back and it was thrust upon them by someone else," said Inojin. "But it was still a bit of a shock."

"Then why don't we find the fox that did it and change them back?"

"It's not that simple, Iwabe," said Shikadai. "We have no idea which kitsune is responsible. We'd have to round them all up in order to find the right one."

"We also have to round them all up to make sure this doesn't happen again," said Boruto. "We can't miss a single one, you know."

"Then let's do that."

"Iwabe, we have no idea where they are," said Sarada. "These kitsune are different from normal foxes. They're tricky. This won't be an easy task."

"Considering how difficult a situation this is, why don't we get the adults to do it?" asked Denki. "The Jonin level shinobi should be able to handle this no problem."

"If they believe us. They weren't there. Besides, they don't know what we know."

"What do we know?" Chocho asked, munching nonchalantly on her potato chips.

"All we know for sure is that these kitsune have skills similar to actual ninja but aren't affected by most jutsu."

"What do you mean by most jutsu?" asked Iwabe.

"According to my dad, things like my shadow jutsu won't work on them. But I'm thinking jutsu like Chocho's expansion might be another matter. Same with Boruto's clones and things like that. The problem is that we gotta be careful with how we use certain jutsu since we can't hurt them."

"At all?"

"Why not?"

"Because if we do, our dads along with anyone else they changed will be stuck like that forever."

"So we can't lay one scratch on these guys?" Iwabe sounded annoyed. "That sucks. And it makes things even harder for us. What if we punch them?"

"We can't risk it," said Sarada. "We don't know how they use their powers. Plus, the Hokage has dealt with them before. He told us that they have to be unharmed in order for them to reverse what they've done. So that's what we gotta do."

"If the Hokage has faced off against them before, why can't he do the same thing now?" he asked. "He could do it no problem, right?"

Inojin glanced around nervously then said in a quiet tone, "We haven't seen the Hokage in a while. Not since he said he was going to tend to their mess in the village. He didn't come back."

The group exchanged worried looks.

"You think he got captured or turned into something by those kitsune?"

He shrugged. "Dunno."

"If the Hokage really did get transformed by those kitsune…" Denki felt a shiver go up his spine. "If the Hokage can't handle these kitsune, what makes you think we can?"

"That stupid old man didn't know what he was getting into," Boruto declared loudly. "We can handle this together no problem."

"What exactly are you basing that on?" Inojin asked.

"Well, that idiot did managed to do something smart by telling us this information before going and getting himself captured or whatever. We can use this information plus the information we already have to save everybody and protect the village."

"Other than the whole jutsu thing and the not harming them in any way, what information is that?" asked Chocho.

"Their skills." Boruto came closer. "I've also run into them before so I know a thing or two about their power. Not just the other day but a couple months back when I stumbled upon their homeland."

"So the kitsune were doing all that stuff in the village the other day? I thought it was someone pulling pranks or something stupid like that." Chocho's hand returned to her chip bag to fish out another one laden with salt and crumbs.

"Their skills are similar to ninja skills, right?" said Denki. "What kind of skills do they have?"

"I've seen them use transformation and cast illusions. That's totally like a ninja using a transformation and shadow clones. Even Genjutsu if you think about it."

"What about them changing people into foxes?"

Boruto cocked his head. "Well… I'm not sure how that fits in to ninja skills. But it's still a transformation. A forced transformation. Close enough, you know."

"Alright," said Iwabe with a grin. "So we're basically fighting a bunch of furry ninja. We can use our skills against them. Come after them with a bunch of clones. Maybe even disguise ourselves so they can't tell the difference…"

They continued talking but Boruto stopped listening after the last thing Iwabe said about disguise.

Kitsune were tricky creatures. They could not only change their forms but they could enter someone else's.

He remembered Inojin being possessed the other day by a fox. He knew now that it was a body jumping kitsune making all those people behave strangely. Who was to say they wouldn't do it again?

How did he know a fox wasn't in their midst this very moment inhabiting a friend or assuming their form?

After all, they had to go find all their friends who were in various locations.

Boruto eyed each friend scrupulously in hopes of finding something about them amiss. They all looked like his friends. They appeared to be acting normally.

Chocho was asking a lot of questions about their plan but so was Denki. It wasn't out of the ordinary considering they were trying to formulate a plan and most of his friends had no idea what was going on. Chocho was eating chips as she normally did. Kitsune didn't always use their fingers in a human guise so she was probably herself. Denki seemed nervous but that was normal for him. He had always been pretty timid.

Metal was the only one not saying anything. Then again, he wasn't always very talkative. If he drew attention to himself in any way, he grew extremely nervous, so he tried to prevent such things from happening. Especially in a dire situation such as this.

Mitsuki also chose not to say much but this was normal for him, sitting back and soaking everything in like a sponge with that calm expression on his pale face.

Shikadai and Sarada were both coming up with a plan of action with the other but they were leading the group. They both had good ideas and information. It might have been more of a red flag if Boruto had not been there when they were given this information.

Inojin as well. He knew certain things only because he had been there to witness it and be given the material. He was obviously worried about his father but still managed to be blunt at times.

Shikadai didn't seem too concerned about his father being turned into a fox.

If he was really a kitsune, he could have been giving them false information or helping them devise a plan that would work against them and in the favor of the kitsune.

"Wait," Boruto interrupted before anything else could be said aloud.

"What now?"

Boruto eyed each of his friends one last time before dropping a bombshell which would undoubtedly lead to mistrust and the same looks he was giving all of them. However, he did so with the best of intentions. He had to be sure none of them were kitsune and prevent them working their way into the group in the future.

"There's something else about kitsune that I think we should all be aware of."

"Which is?"

"Kitsune not only have the ability to transform themselves, but they can also possess people."

Just as he expected, they all gave each other worried and suspicious looks.

"So, they can use the Mind Transfer Jutsu like Inojin but he can't use it on them?" Denki looked very concerned. "This makes things more challenging, that's for sure."

"We've got to make sure we're really us. Now and while we're doing this," said Boruto. "That way we won't have any foxes messing up our plans."

"What do you suggest?"

"We should have a password of some kind," Boruto announced. "That way, whenever we meet up, we'll know who's real and who might be a fox."

"Good idea."

"What should it be?"

"It should be easy to remember but not too common."

"What about a finish this sentence kind of thing. Like someone says 'leaf' and the other says 'village' or something?"

"That's too on the nose. How about..?"

"No way," Sarada said suddenly.

Everyone looked at her.

"No passwords," she said. "It won't work."

Iwabe narrowed his eyes at her. "Why? You worried?"

"I am but not because I'm a fox."

"How did you know I was thinking that?" Iwabe was getting ready to subdue her, thinking she was an impostor.

"It's obvious that everyone's worried about that," she said putting a hand on her hip. "But if I was a fox, why would I stop you from coming up with a password before I could hear it?"

Confused, Iwabe titled his head to one side. "Huh?"

"Think about it," she said. "What if a kitsune has already infiltrated our group? If we come up with a password now, it will be able to learn it, too, and then pass it on to its friends. It'll make having a password pointless."

"She's right," said Shikadai. "A password's a stupid idea in that sense."

"Then what do you suggest?"

"I propose we ask each other personal questions only we would know," she advised. "The kitsune haven't been here that long. They wouldn't have access to information we learned about in school or our personal lives together. We should stick to those."

In order to prove to Boruto and the others that he was himself, Naruto had given them information only someone close to the family would know. That had given Sarada the idea to do something similar after noticing the flaw with passwords.

"Sounds good to me." Iwabe then eyed Boruto suspiciously. "Is there any particular reason why you wanted us to use a password so badly?"

"To tell who my friends were from a fox."

"Yeah, sure. Or to throw us off your trail." Iwabe got in Boruto's face. "Admit it. You're the fox. That's why you made that suggestion. You wanted us to give you information you could use against us. Pass it on to your fox friends like Sarada said."

"Iwabe, Boruto has been with us the whole time. Never left our sight."

"Well, I bet the fox is the person who was all for the password idea. Someone who might have gotten nervous about the personal touch thing." Iwabe pointed to Sarada and Shikadai. "You two are safe because you liked the personal idea. But that means everyone else is under suspicion."

"Including you, in that case."

"Me?"

"Yeah, you. How do we know you're not being so protective in order to throw us off the scent?"

"Scent? That sounds like something a fox would say."

"Guys!" Boruto shouted. "If we want to win this, we can't turn on each other."

He regretted bringing it up in the first place. He should have just kept it to himself and tried to find the impostor on his own. Now his friends didn't trust each other and it was all because of his big mouth.

"We don't even know if there is a fox among us," he went on. "I just said that so we would be on guard just in case one of us started acting strange. After all, I think we can tell without personal information or passwords who's a fox and who isn't. They made it pretty obvious the other day."

"How's that?"

"When Inojin got possessed, he could barely run a straight line. He didn't act like himself, had a different laugh. It was painfully obvious it wasn't him."

"Exactly," said Sarada. "I don't think anyone here is a fox based on that. But if it makes anyone feel any better, we can ask each other something personal right now. That way we'll know for sure and can move on with forming an actual plan."

"Won't that just waste time?" asked Denki. "Plus, then if there is a fox here, they'll know the information now. Same as they would if it were a password."

"Not if we ask something different every time."

"That's true."

"To save on time, let's all answer the same question together. Ok? Everyone, who was our homeroom teacher at the academy? One, two, three…"

"Shino-sensei," everyone said at once. To make sure no one was cheating, everyone picked someone and stared at their lips to make sure they were speaking the same name at the same time and not phoning it in. They listened, too, in order to make sure they weren't just moving their lips and actually said the correct name.

Now satisfied, the group went back to forming their plan to round up the foxes and rescue those transformed, restoring the village to normal.

Using what little they knew about kitsune, it was decided that they would lay a trap for the hungry foxes by placing a large quantity of food in the park in the hopes they would be drawn to an area resembling their natural home.

Sarada was the first to call the plan ridiculous but was out-voted by the others.

"These kitsune are smarter than normal foxes. And what makes you think they'll be hiding out in the park? If anything, they'll be in a populated area; possibly disguised as people. We need to search the shopping area."

"I say they'll be more comfortable in a place with tons of grass and trees," insisted Boruto. "Besides, what's searching the shopping area going to do if we don't know who's a fox and who isn't?"

"He's right," said Denki. "If they're in some random person we've never meet before, how are we supposed to know if they're acting normal or not? Not to mention we'd be unable to ask them anything personal since we don't know them."

"It'll be obvious when they're running around on four legs or stumbling through the village."

"What if they're in someone who's sitting down? Or if they have a balance problem or happen to be drunk?"

"In the middle of the afternoon?"

"You haven't seen my dad after a bad meeting."

Sarada put a hand to her forehead, groaning. "This plan is a waste of time. We would have better results if we fan out and sweep the village."

"No way," said Boruto. "That'll make it easier for the kitsune to replace us. We can't split up."

"This might not be such a bad idea," said Chocho, now on her second bag of chips. "Even animals need to eat to replenish their strength and power-up. Kitsune or not, that truth remains the same."

"But Chocho, a pile of food in the middle of the park? Are they really going to fall for something like that? The plan is too simple. We're treating them like a bunch of simple-minded animals and even then, it doesn't always work. These kitsune are smart. It's not like they won't notice something so obvious."

"It's not about smarts," Chocho said, drawing her hand from her bag of chips to clench before her chest. "It's about necessity and convenience."

"Huh?" Sarada cocked her head, tilting her glasses and forming a glare which hid her eyes from view.

"No matter who you are, when your strength is down, you've gotta eat something and the easiest and fastest way to do that is with a convenient meal. You won't have the strength to travel far or prepare it yourself which means you'll have to get whatever's available. Even if it's a trap, it's right there. You'll have to run the risk and get to it in order to save yourself."

"Save yourself? But it's a trap and you're willingly going into it knowing it might be just that."

Chocho nodded with resolve. "Exactly. But at least then you'll have access to the very thing that will restore your strength. Even if it means getting captured, at least then you'll have the strength to fight. If you avoid the trap, you'll just spend what's left of your energy getting away from it and then collapsing in the middle of nowhere and getting captured because you're too weak to move. Now you can't fight at all and you're captured. So going into a trap makes perfect sense."

"Heh…" Sarada couldn't argue with Chocho's logic, her mind reeling from its simplicity. She wanted to point out other possibilities but also knew that Chocho did have a point.

Intelligent or not, the kitsune might become desperate and instinctively go to the food that was laid out for them. If their knowledge of human customs were limited, they might not have known how to get food any other way without revealing themselves.

As Naruto pointed out, they were still animals.

Leave it to Chocho's calorie-counting calculations to reach such simplistic reasoning. This was how her friend thought. It sounded absurd to the rest of them, but Chocho was applying her own logic to what she would do in such a situation. If it meant burning more calories to avoid a trap only to be captured later with no strength to fight back, she would gladly go into a trap to conserve her strength and replenish what she had lost.

Sarada hoped Chocho was correct just so the plan wouldn't be a senseless waste of time.

Every second they were waiting for the kitsune to be snared in the trap the still had to build, the intelligent foxes were learning more and more about their world. Information they could use against them if given the opportunity.

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13:**

"Faster. Faster!"

Shikamaru shut his eyes as low shrubbery and tall vegetation whipped him in the face. The only way he was able to stay on the uneven path was by following Aurora's hollering.

He hadn't been on the field in a long time as he was adviser to the Hokage but he wasn't rusty. The main issue was jumping right back into it in a different body; one he had never been in before. Being pushed to run through the forest nonstop and expected to keep up with a trio of nimble foxes had him begging for mercy.

The group finally came to a stop by a stream to rest. Shikamaru's wobbling legs were unable to carry him to the water for a drink, collapsing under him the moment he was told he could rest. His ragged breaths puffed dry dirt away from his face, making his nose twitch.

Sai had a more difficult time stopping once given the ok. Still unable to fully control all four legs, he had been able to run through the trees only after switching to autopilot. Suddenly allowed to take a break, Sai hurried to get out of it and was unable to do so gracefully. It was like having a treadmill come to an abrupt stop in a dead run. He told himself to stop but his limbs were only able to half-register the order, trying to continue and stop at the same time.

Sai's legs tangled together and he fell to the ground, one leg still trying to run for some reason. He didn't trust himself to stay standing, feeling his legs shake as if about to start running again. He forced himself to sit, but his front paws were still trembling as he pressed them to the ground to remain upright.

The kitsune looked amused.

"You remind me of my pups when they were first learning to walk," commented Aurora.

"Kits," Shikamaru corrected. "A baby fox is a kit."

Aurora smirked. "To you humans. To kitsune, we call our young pups. Perhaps common foxes call their young that, but so there is no confusion, I'll let you know that we do not," she informed.

"It might lead to confusion considering it's part of their name," commented Sai. "Kit. Kitsune."

"I get it."

"Still getting used to your body or are you out of shape?" asked Seki.

Shikamaru found the strength to lift himself into a laying posing to address him without having his head on the ground.

"I haven't gone on many missions lately, but I'm still in good shape. I've never had to run on all fours before. Plus, I've never been one to push myself past my limit if I can help it."

"That so? But you are a ninja. Do ninja not grapple with enemies while on missions and travel great distances?"

"Even when I was younger, I actively tried to avoid doing that," Shikamaru admitted. "I'm strong, but everyone knows I'm lazy. Even when I'm giving my all and putting forth an effort, I must admit I'm not the fastest ninja among my friends. Nor am I the strongest physically speaking. I have limitations."

He could hold his own in combat but he wasn't as strong as Choji and he wasn't as fast as Kiba. His talents were put to good use, however. Aware of his limitations, he knew what he could and could not do and what he could do well. He was a strategist more than anything. Gathering information and using it to compensate for what he lacked so he stood a better chance of winning. Using what he learned against his enemy and plan for different outcomes and their likelihood.

"I do better with observation and thinking than running nonstop and punching my way through things. I plan attacks, I gather data. My jutsu is strong, my strategies are great. But I'm not the strongest or fastest among my friends. But I can use it to my advantage."

"Like letting your enemy tire out while you hide," commented Sai.

"I wasn't going to say that but yeah. I don't do things without reason."

"And I suppose Naruto doesn't either," said Seki.

Shikamaru didn't say anything.

He knew there was more to this than Naruto was letting on and he was also aware that the kitsune knew more than they were telling. This transformation was meant to teach them something and Shikamaru had to be open to it in order to learn what that was.

He had not lived among the kitsune as Naruto had done. He did not know their history nor that of the mountain. He was also ignorant of what Seki had been through, having lost a brother to a human and having one taken and imprisoned by a traitor fox.

In time he would learn. Seki would speak of it. Shikamaru would discovery why Naruto wanted this. Why it was important for him to become a fox and run with them while the children were tested within the village.

"Drink," Aurora told them and walked to the stream.

Shikamaru took his time getting up, allowing Sai to take the first drink. He dangled his head over the water and tried slurping the water using his lips but couldn't manage it. He successfully snorted water up his nose and drew his head back, coughing.

He looked to Aurora for assistance and was advised to use his tongue to drink. He tried lapping up the water using the front of his tongue which worked but wasn't enough to quench his thirst.

"The back of your tongue," she told Sai. "Use it as a cup."

"I don't think I can," he said. "My tongue doesn't do that."

"Not a human tongue but a fox tongue is more flexible."

Sai stuck out his tongue finding that he could lick his nose which was impossible before. Using their advice, Sai use the back of his tongue as a cup and drank from the stream successfully.

Hearing their tips, Shikamaru was able to use this information to drink as well without soaking himself or snorting water. For this reason, he was glad he made Sai go first and suffer through trial and error.

Then his stomach growled and Shikamaru asked what they would do for food.

"Should we go back to the village and get something from home?" asked Sai. "Ino likes to leave the window open and we have fruit on the table. It would be the easiest thing to grab since we can't open much with paws."

Preparing a meal was out of the question but Shikamaru had already suspected that they would not be permitted to go home for a lunch break.

"Easy, yes. For humans," said Seki. "But you are kitsune now. Foxes. You must find your own food and most households will not tolerate animals coming in through the window to take food from their table."

Sai then said, "Ino also isn't aware of this transformation. I could tell her what happened and she can bring food to us."

"But having someone know you would be an advantage," said Aurora. "Most kitsune aren't given such luxuries."

"That would defeat the purpose of us living as kitsune, wouldn't it?" said Shikamaru.

"Precisely."

Sai let out a deep breath and said, "Then I guess we'll have to forage. Shouldn't be too hard."

The kitsune exchanged foxy grins, suspecting these ninja would have a more difficult time foraging as foxes than they would as humans.

A suspicion which was proven true when they tried to take berries off bushes with their paws only to fail. They learned quickly to take from the thin branches with their teeth but became irritated when the leaves and twigs stabbed them in the eyes and nose.

Shikamaru tried to hold the branches apart with his paws while eating from the bush with his mouth but it was difficult to tell where the berries were with his snout blocking his view. He felt around with his tongue for the tiny berries while Sai ripped the branch off the bush and tried to eat the berries that way. Shikamaru then tried to strip the branches of their berries with his mouth but it was painful work, the twigs stabbing and gouging at his face and tongue, only to end up crushing the berries from the pressure of his teeth and jaws.

After tasting mostly twigs and leaves, Shikamaru gave up and tried to find something else to eat. Sai gave up only after he looked back at the bush and finding no more berries to eat. There were barely any to begin with and between him and Shikamaru, there wasn't enough for even a snack.

They came to a small cluster of fruit trees and were relieved to find something substantial. The issue now was how to get up there.

Sai immediately tried climbing up the side of the tree forgetting that he couldn't use chakra anymore and slid down the bark. He had been using ninja arts for so long he felt helpless when he found he could no longer perform such a simple task.

He then tried jumping, once again forgetting that his fox form was more limited than his human legs he could enhance with chakra. He could jump fairly high but failed to reach the branch above his head.

He sat where he was, measuring the height with his eyes and studied the tree trunk. He was so much shorter now, evidenced by all the shrubs hitting him in the face when he ran through the forest. Without chakra and other ninja skills to help him, he was at a loss for how to reach the fruit hanging from the branches.

"How do we..?"

Shikamaru had been studying as well and thought he had it figured out. He approached the trunk and attempted to climb it using the old-fashioned method. His claws shank into the bark and his paws began to slips. He slid down the tree trunk and landed on the roots.

He stood up, stared at the tree, backed up and took a running start. He jumped as high as he could and dug his claws into the bark again. As soon as he started slipping, he tried running up the side of the trunk as fast as he could. He tried to launch himself at the branches, seeing them get closer with each effort, but kept falling short.

Sai saw what he was doing and tried to do the same thing. When he failed, he told Shikamaru to using him as a spring board in order to get higher off the ground. Shikamaru took another running start and jumped onto Sai's back. Sai bucked, launching Shikamaru just as he jumped, giving him more power and he managed to get a little higher this time before slipping and having to scurry up the trunk as fast as he could.

Shikamaru's paw touched the nearest branch but with no fingers, he slipped and fell.

His stomach growled louder. If it weren't for his hunger, he would have given up and looked for a different option.

He was tiring himself out. He tired once more to reach the branch only to make it halfway up the tree this time before falling. He managed to climb higher than that before. He was losing strength.

Shikamaru sat on the ground and stared at the plump fruit taunting him from above. He picked up a rock in his teeth and tried to launch it at the fruit to knock them loose but his accuracy left a lot to be desired. Flinging a stone from his mouth was very different from throwing a kunai with a flick of his wrist.

If he had access to his tools and use of human hands, he could have easily cut the fruit from the branch and have it fall into his hand.

How did they live like this? The simplest tasks were grueling chores.

The only thing keeping Shikamaru's emotions in check was knowing that if he failed to feed himself today, he could always go home and have his wife feed him or join Choji for a meal in the village. The kitsune didn't have that option. This was their life. If they couldn't get food, they would go hungry.

They didn't have money to purchase food, they didn't live in human villages. They weren't transformed for a set amount of time like Sai and Shikamaru. They had to learn how to get food in the wild or starve.

Shikamaru had options. Money, friends, tools, thumbs, chakra.

Now that they had been taken from him, he didn't know what to do. The kitsune were used to this so they could manage. Which meant if he wanted to eat, he had to have them teach him.

He knew how to forage as a human but not as a fox. He knew he had to ask for help.

"How do we get up there?" he asked, finally giving up. If he had been more prideful, he might have continued, insistent on doing it himself because he already knew how to survive. Given his options and being a sucker for the easy solution, he felt little shame in asking for advice from a fox.

"You're doing very well, actually," said Seki. "What you're doing is what we normally do to get food from trees."

"But we can't reach them."

"Sometimes we can't either."

"In which case," said Reki, "we either give up and wait for the fruit to fall or…"

Reki walked to a different tree, ran up its knotted trunk, into the branches, across a branch which bowed under his weight, and jumped into the fruit tree, knocking two ripe apples down with his paws as he fell back to earth.

"… You walk through a barren branch to get what you can."

Reki could not perch on the branches of the fruit tree, not from where he had launched himself. There had been many times when he had tried only to fail, so he discovered it wasn't always about landing in the tree but getting as close as he could and knocking the fruit down before he fell.

Shikamaru had not thought to use the other trees because they were too far away and did not think he could climb those if he could not climb this one. It also made little sense to him to climb a tree with no fruit, failing to consider using those as spring boards knowing they would never reach the fruit tree.

If he hadn't been so fixated on reaching the fruit tree, he might have considered what Reki had learned years ago and grab what he could before he landed on the ground. He felt like an idiot for not thinking of such a simple option.

Once they ate the apples, the kitsune took them deeper into the forest. They stopped after only a minute, spotting their next lesson.

"When we cannot find fruit to eat, our only other option is meat."

"Oh, crap." Shikamaru knew what their next lesson was going to be.

Aurora pointed to the squirrel on a tree root and told them to catch it.

"How?" Sai asked.

"Figure it out," she told him.

Catching a small mammal would be no different from spying on an enemy during a mission. He knew how to keep quiet and out of sight. Surely, this would be easier than climbing a tree with no hands or chakra.

Sai crept forward on his four paws, keeping low to the ground. His prey didn't notice him yet. Closer… Closer…

He pounced and tried to snare the animal with his paws. The squirrel scampered up the tree and out of sight. Sai's paws hit the dirt and he looked into the tree to see where it went but could not spot it.

The kitsune did not snicker at his attempt but praised him for trying. They moved on, stopping when they saw another small animal they could hunt. This time they sent Shikamaru.

He did no better than Sai when it came to catching a mouse which disappeared in the tree roots when he tried to grab it with his paws.

Again and again they were set to catch an animal but failed every time. Shikamaru came close when he caught a mouse by the tail but it wriggled away before he could stop it completely. At one point he became desperate and tried using his shadow only to remember that was an impossibility and hung his head with a sigh.

"Maybe we should try fish," suggested Sai.

"Be my guest," said Aurora.

The winding stream was just as unforgiving as the harsh maze of trees and bumpy earth. Their small bodies were nearly swept away by the slow current when they tried wading into the water to cut the fish off as they swam, finding the water much deeper than expected.

Shikamaru tried catching the fish from the bank while Sai tried from another location. Without his tools, he would have to catch the fish using his body. As soon as he saw some, he pounced. It got away as did the next four. He came very close during his next jump. He wrapped both arms around the fish as it wiggled against his chest. He slipped under water and the fish managed to get away from there.

He crawled out of the stream and looked to see how Sai was doing. He was having just as much trouble. Then snared one which he hugged to his chest with both paws. Shikamaru could see it slowly wiggling itself free and Sai tried desperately to fling it into the grass. It bounced off the embankment and back into the water where it swam away.

This wasn't working. Their bodies were too small. They had no hands to grab and no tools to use. No chakra.

Everything they knew how to do they had to relearn and do a different way in order to compensate for these changes.

Shikamaru found himself lamenting the same things over and over again. It kept coming back to a lack of form and chakra. He knew this. There was no point complaining about it. No point in repeating what he was already aware of. Yet he kept doing it.

Maybe he was just frustrated. Perhaps he kept going back to this understanding in order to solve the issue because they were still having trouble.

Finally, he reached a conclusion.

Yes, they didn't have those things anymore because they weren't human. They were foxes. So instead of trying to solve the issue as humans, they needed to solve them as foxes. It was the simplest solution.

It was another matter to apply it, considering he still thought like a human. He didn't know how to do things as an animal. He had never been a fox before.

But he had seen them.

The best thing he could do was mimic them.

He approached the stream again and stared out over the water, waiting. He saw a fish and dove into the stream.

He had no hands to grab it and no blades to pierce it. But he had a jaw which could grasp and teeth like blades. He saw the fish at the end of his nose, opened his mouth and bit down.

He pulled his head out of the water, whimpering in discomfort as he felt something wiggling in his mouth. He hurried out of the water and dropped the fish in the grass where it flopped and gasped. Shikamaru spat in disgust, never having a live fish in his mouth before.

But he did it. He caught a fish. All on his own.

The kitsune were pleased and came over to congratulate him. He felt proud of himself and quickly went to give Sai the same advice.

"If you're a fox, behave like one. Use your mouth, like they do. Use your teeth to catch it."

It took several tries but Sai finally managed to duplicate Shikamaru's success and pulled a fish out of the water with his teeth and brought it to shore.

"How do we cook it?" asked Sai to the kitsune. "Does your fox fire have the same properties as normal flame and can be used to build a fire?"

Aurora scoffed at the notion. "Cook? You think kitsune carry pots and pans like humans? Where would we put them? Carry them? No, we eat our food raw when we catch it."

"Raw? Everything?"

"Everything we catch. Cooked food is a luxury provided by humans in offerings. If they don't provide, we do not sample."

As went the saying 'beggars can't be choosers', Shikamaru realized. Unless humans gave them cooked food, kitsune never tasted it. Kitsune didn't dictate what they received in offerings but were grateful for what they obtained. Scraps from a prepared meal intended for the trash were given to them instead.

Sai looked at the air-drowned fish by his paws and commented, "Even sashimi is cooked to some extent. Boiled, seared… You don't prepare anything you eat?"

"It is not uncommon for us to eat our catch while it's still moving."

"Rats, mostly."

"We catch rabbits, biting their necks, but sometimes it is not enough to kill them, just immobilize."

Shikamaru swallowed hard at the description, imagining a helpless rabbit with its windpipe crushed slowly bleeding to death while its body convulsed weakly in a fox's mouth. He hoped he wouldn't be expected to do that next. Chasing down the woodland creatures was challenging enough but eating them raw and warm was something he didn't want to be a part of.

"Do not worry," said Seki. "We usually wait until they're dead before eating them. I'm just saying sometimes it's hard to tell when they're unable to move. And sometimes we have little choice because even heavily injured prey can make their escape, burrowing into a hole and dying out of reach. It's a waste when that happens because it dies but we do not get our meal."

"I thought I had killed a snake once and carried it back to the others," said Reki. "I put it down and prepared to divide it with the others and it got up and slithered away. I was so disappointed."

Aurora gestured to the fish on the ground with her nose. "Even though these ones have stopped moving, they might still be alive. It is hard to tell. That is why we told you we sometimes eat them while they're still alive. Can you tell with absolute certainty?"

It wasn't meant to disgust them but as a warning just in case the creature they hunted suddenly sprang up mustering one last effort to escape being eaten. Since they did not cook their kill, they lacked certainty, even with a clean bite to the throat.

Shikamaru had faced enemies who did not die despite a mortal wound. He himself had jolted back in surprise while trying to clean what he thought to be a dead fish only for it to wriggle in his hand.

The kitsune told them about how they brought food back to their family atop the mountain. How mothers regurgitated their meal for their young when small and carried heavy loads in their jaws up steep cliffs to the top for their children who were not yet big enough to leave and hunt for themselves. How they had to carry extra food in case their young were unsuccessful in their early hunts or rely on offerings lest they go hungry.

There were no stores for them to go to. No packs filled with provisions. No weapons other than their own bodies to hunt for food. They buried any uneaten food in the ground to save for another day and hoped it would not be stolen by another animal or rot.

The life of a human by comparison was very convenient.

Though humans down on their luck struggled as well. Shikamaru had seen beggars in the street on location for a mission and saw starving children grab what they could from vendors and race back to feed their siblings.

Shikamaru had not been with her for this mission, but Ino told him about a mission she went on which required her to stop a band of thieves in a village only to discover the culprits were a group of homeless children who stole to survive. Her mission was to stop them, but she found herself torn, seeing the look in their eyes and knowing they were suffering. They did not mean to cause harm; they only wanted to live.

Children stealing from vendors, animals raiding through trashcans. Shikamaru was finding it difficult to see a difference.

It might have just been the perspective from his fox body, but Shikamaru hadn't felt this small in a long time.

* * *

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	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14:**

Sarada drummed her fingers on her leg as she crouched beside Boruto behind a bush in the park, watching a pile of food they had gathered and left under a tree.

"I keep telling you, this is a stupid idea," she hissed. "While we're here wasting our time, the kitsune are adapting to the village. Assimilating. Soon, they'll learn how to act more human and we won't be able to tell the difference."

"But they're still animals," reasoned Boruto. "Their instincts will take over and they won't be able to resist free food laying on the ground like that."

"I'm finding it hard to resist," said Chocho, "but mostly because you decided to sacrifice a perfectly good bag of chips and jerky. You know that's a limited addition sweet and tangy barbecue pork belly jerky, right? Why couldn't we go with an off-brand or a common one? Like foxes can tell the difference."

They had been crouching in the bushes for almost an hour and any passing human traveling through the park only glanced at the food and kept moving. Boruto got his hopes up each time but Sarada was certain they only looked because it was such an odd sight to behold.

"I told you this was a stupid idea."

"You made your point, Sarada."

Even so, no one was willing to abandon the mission. She proposed splitting into two teams so Boruto could see his pile of food idea through while Sarada exercised her plan in the village, but he wasn't willing to cooperate, saying splitting up would make it easier for the kitsune to infiltrate their group.

"We have to stay together."

"But we're wasting time. We could be-"

"Wait," said Iwabe. "Look."

He pointed at the pile of food they had dumped on the ground. A male shinobi was investigating the pile. Everyone watched to see what would happen next but by this time most believed it was going to be another false alarm.

The man stood over the pile and inspected it. He crouched down and lifted an open bag of chips with his finger to look inside and underneath. He stood up and scanned the area with his eyes. He turned his body left, right and left again before looking back at the pile. Then he crouched down and started picking up different items, gathering them into his arms.

"He's collecting the food," said Iwabe.

"I knew this would pay off," said Boruto. "Not such a stupid idea now, is it?"

Before anyone could retort, Boruto sprang from his hiding place, summoned three clones and together they tackled to man to the ground.

Sarada remained where she was, holding her face in her hands as Boruto was overpowered and restrained by the older ninja.

"What the hell did you do that for?" he asked Boruto, holding the boy's wrist with his hand.

"Get your hands off me, kitsune!"

"What?"

"You can't fool me," Boruto said, pointing his free hand at the man's face. "I saw you rummaging through that pile. Why were you doing that?"

"You mean the pile of trash? I thought someone was picnicking and left it behind."

"I left it there to lure out the kitsune."

"You're the one littering the park?" The ninja pulled Boruto closer. "You can't leave trash here. It'll attract animals. Not to mention the hazards all these plastic bags cause. People had young children here, and pets."

"So… You weren't going to eat that stuff?"

"I was gathering it up to throw in the trash. Now that I know you're responsible, I'm going to make you do it."

"I knew this would happen," Sarada said with a sigh. "He didn't think his plan through, did he?"

"What a waste," Chocho said, giving the pile of open snacks a sad look. "If they weren't on the ground, I would have eaten them."

"Those weren't for you," said Iwabe. "They were for the fox things."

"I know that," she said in her usual bored drawl. "But they didn't show up. If I couldn't eat it, I would have wanted them to eat them rather than have all that good food go to waste. Now it's just being dumped in the trash."

"You only wanted them to show up to eat the food?" Denki said in annoyed surprise. Chocho didn't care about luring the kitsune. She only wanted the food to be eaten and not go to waste. Knowing this, she might have stalled the team from capturing the foxes until after they had made a dent in the pile, completely missing the point of their mission.

Shikadai rested his chin on his hand, hunching forward in irritation as Boruto was made to pick up the pile of convenience store goodies on the other side of the walkway.

"What are our other options?" he asked. "There's no way we can tell the adults about this and it's got nothing to do with pride. They might not believe us, as we discussed before, but they might also have been replaced by kitsune, as Sarada pointed out."

"Well, sitting around waiting for them to show up is not going to work," said Inojin. "I think this was a total waste of time. Sarada was right. We should have begun our search earlier. Now we may never find the kitsune in the village. They're in too deep."

"Plus, we have to find our dads but how can we tell them from the foxes?"

"Do what Sarada said and ask them personal questions."

Shikadai scrunched up his face in thought. "We might not need to."

"How's that?"

"If the kitsune are trying to blend in, their best chance to do that is to hide inside a human. Therefore, we're not likely to run into too many foxes on the street. So any foxes we find could be our dads or other people they've transformed."

"You sure?"

"I doubt our dads and any other villager would know how to use the same power these kitsune have. If they could. For all we know, they might have been turned into regular foxes and not kitsune."

"But they talked to us, Shikadai. Kitsune can talk but regular foxes…"

"Unless they were only able to talk because they were once human. That's a possibility."

"Are we seriously starting over from square one?" Iwabe asked, sounding irritated. "We're wasting time."

"Thanks to Boruto," said Sarada snidely.

"Sarada was right about one thing," said Shikadai. "We need to know what these foxes are capable of. Boruto said that they have powers similar to a ninja's, right? Other than casting illusions, transforming people and possession, what else can they do?"

"Maybe that's it?"

"Maybe we should look up the lore and see for ourselves," suggested Denki. "There's mention of kitsune in a number of legends. If we read some of the stories, we might get a better idea of what they can do. Even learn their weaknesses."

"If those books have any real facts," said Iwabe. "How would we tell the difference between an actual piece of information and something someone made up for the sake of the story? For all we know, none of those legends have any real facts in them. It could all be made up and what actual kitsune can do is totally different."

"You got a point there…" Denki looked down sadly. "I was just going on a hunch, grasping at anything I could. We've never faced anything like this before. Creatures from myths, actually walking around, doing stuff in our village. If we were facing normal people, then…"

"That should not matter," said Metal, putting an encouraging hand on Denki's shoulder. "Even foes we face in combat are things of legend if they are famous enough. Sometimes the tales we are told are greatly exaggerated. Sometimes the power of that legendary person is far greater than the rumors. You never know the truth until you face it yourself."

Metal had a point. They had only witnessed a fraction of a kitsune's abilities but had no way of knowing what else they were capable of, only that they had other powers. A book might have been helpful, but it was only hearsay. Sometimes rumors didn't measure up to the thing itself and some rumors carried little truth after being tossed around so much and some were made up completely.

If they were going to take on these kitsune and win, they not only had to work together but face this as they did any enemy. They had to experience it for themselves. It was dangerous, but so was facing a foe on the battlefield.

Knowing three abilities was enough for now. They would discover the rest as they advanced.

Boruto returned to the group miserable and angry. Not because he was made to clean up all by himself while the elder ninja watched, but because his hunch had been wrong and he wasted everyone's time.

When he heard that Sarada was now taking charge and planned on leading everyone into the village, Boruto had a new reason to be upset and immediately protested.

"Are you nuts? How do you expect to find the kitsune in the middle of the village?"

"If we had started sooner, it might have been much easier," Sarada told him in a condescending fashion.

"And now that they've gotten better about blending in, you want to take everyone into the most populated areas of the Leaf to hunt them down? That's a terrible idea. Not only do we not know what we're looking for, but we'd be making things much easier for them. If it's crowded, they stand a better chance of infiltrating our group. We should stay away from populated areas."

"But they're most likely to be in populated areas as they have the most people and best cover," she reasoned.

"I'm not letting you put everyone in danger just to get back at me."

"This isn't about paying you back for being stupid. It's about ending this quickly before it becomes impossible for us to stop them."

"Yeah, it'll be over quick because you're going to get everybody possessed or transformed, you know?"

Shikadai wedged himself between the two. "Alright, alright, knock it off. Look, I know it's taking a huge risk, but we've gotta do something. Our dads aren't going to get back to normal with us standing here arguing. And since when do you shy away from danger, Boruto? We face things like this all the time on missions and stuff. Even that new game we got months ago had all kinds of secret chambers with high-level dudes. And that one with the screen only letting you see the squares directly in front of you so you can't tell if an enemy is coming until they're on top of you? You play anyway to get to the next floor."

"Another game analogy?" Sarada asked, a glare forming across her glasses.

"The point is, you still go for it."

"I know that," Boruto said. "But if we all get possessed by these things, it's all over and no one can save your dads. That's what I'm trying to avoid, you know?"

He knew he didn't have all the information he would have liked to face this enemy but what he did know was enough to make him worry about the safety of his friends.

Inojin had been possessed once before by a young and inexperienced kitsune as did his sensei and they still managed to cause all sorts of trouble in the village before returning to normal. These kitsune were older and more powerful. He suspected that if they wanted to, they could hide in plain sight easily.

He still couldn't be sure none of his friends had already been replaced which was why he was using all his poor ideas first just in case. While he knew his plan of leaving food out for the kitsune might backfire, he also believed it could work. He didn't know how bright these kitsune were. They were still animals, after all.

Sarada's plan was a good one but he knew it wasn't the best idea either. Sending his friends into a crowded area to look for an enemy who could possess others seemed like the best way to get a kitsune into their group without anyone knowing. Anyone who bumped into them could have been transferring a kitsune from one body to another. Or it could have been an accident, given the crowded location. It would be impossible to tell.

Sarada was the first one to point out his half-baked plan and the looks he received from Shikadai and Inojin suggested that they, too, felt it was pretty foolish but they still went along with it to see the outcome.

Denki and Iwabe both gave him questioning looks but helped with the plan anyway, uncertain of what would work since they had never faced or seen a kitsune before.

Chocho, Metal and Mitsuki all went along with the plan with minimal skepticism, if any, but Boruto suspected that was mostly due to their personalities and the fact that they, too, had little to no experience with kitsune. While Mitsuki had been there to help fight against the young ones racing out of the art store, he witnessed very little and in accordance with his personality, he went along with just about anything Boruto said.

So far, none of them seemed out of the ordinary and no one had contributed anything that might lead them into a trap. Anyone who didn't speak much wasn't very chatty to begin with but he still couldn't rule them out as a kitsune.

Given their remarks and reactions, he was almost certain that Sarada, Inojin, Shikadai, Chocho, Denki and Iwabe were not kitsune. That left Metal and Mitsuki but their reactions were also excusable given their personalities.

While the possibility was still on his mind, he knew he couldn't fixate too much on his current circle of friends with so many other kitsune running around the village. He had to locate them as well.

But if one of his friends had been replaced, was it safe to look for other kitsune and trust that they wouldn't interfere? Should he find the one in his group first to make sure they wouldn't be taken down from the inside? If there even was a kitsune to begin with. He could have been wrong, given the evidence or lack thereof.

As Sarada went over her plan with the others, Boruto interrupted to ask, "How can we be certain that none of us will be possessed in the crowd? You saw what happened the other day. It's so easy for them to get inside someone without anybody noticing. How can we avoid that?"

"It seems to happen through touch, so we'll make sure no one touches us."

"In a crowd?" Boruto raised his brow at Sarada. "You can guarantee that for sure?"

"Part of being a ninja is about evading attacks. Consider this a training exercise."

"But even elite ninja get shoved or have their toes stepped on," Boruto argued. "There's no way to avoid everything, you know? Now who has the stupid idea?"

He doubted Sarada was a kitsune but it seemed almost as if she were luring them into a situation where other kitsune could possess the ninja and leave no one standing to oppose them.

She looked and acted just like Sarada and she had been with him the whole time. Even the way she insulted him and pointed out his foolish ideas was on par with her normal self. She couldn't have been possessed.

She just wanted to get this done and help everyone. She wanted to jump into the heat of things but also wanted a plan and information to help them achieve their goal.

After explaining the plan in more detail, Boruto agreed to give her idea a chance. They were going to remain spread out and to make sure no one got possessed, they were to ask each other personal questions each time they regrouped. It seemed like the best way to make sure everyone stayed safe.

Before heading into the crowded shopping district, Boruto leaned close to Sarada's ear and whispered, "What is the name of our sensei?"

She looked over her shoulder, gave him a suspicious look and answered, "Konohamaru."

Relieved, he started to walk away then she asked him a question.

"You think I'm a kitsune?"

"You were leading us into a dangerous situation. I didn't think you were but I had to be sure."

"Fine. Then answer one of my questions."

"Fine," he sighed.

"What's your go-to jutsu, in and outside of battle?"

"Seriously?" he asked. "You just saw me use it a second ago to grab that guy. My Shadow Clone Jutsu. That's your question?"

She smirked. "I knew you weren't a kitsune, but fair is fair, don't you think?"

"Whatever."

Normally, Boruto would have thrown caution to the wind and jumped in without thinking just to take action and win. The fact that he wasn't revealed his concern to Sarada, which also told her that he knew what was at stake.

* * *

Everyone took their positions in the populated shopping district. Two atop buildings, several on the ground and a couple shifting positions to report and expand their view. If anyone acted or looked suspicious, they were to signal the others and engage the target.

Sarada made it clear that engaging didn't mean attack publicly. They would either talk to the person from a safe distance to test the person's reaction or mark them in some way so a group of two could follow them and ambush them around a corner. This way if there were more than one kitsune lurking about, none of them would be alarmed or suspect the young ninja.

Boruto sent in one clone to search from the ground, confident that if a kitsune did try to possess him, the clone would pop and the others would contain the persons in the immediate area. It was the safest way to search, he believed.

Naturally, he didn't tell any of his friends which was the clone and which was his real body, knowing those free to move around would come to report to him and the other ninja above, making him an easy target for a kitsune.

The humans coming in and out of buildings and walking up and down the street all appeared normal, making this a very boring stakeout.

Mitsuki came to speak with Boruto on the roof.

"Do I need to answer a question or am I good?" he asked with his usual smile.

"Nah, you're fine." Boruto rested his chin on his hand as he looked down over the edge of the roof. The most exciting event so far was a woman knocking over a wind-chime which shattered and she opened her purse to pay for the damage.

Mitsuki sat beside Boruto. "Remind me again why we are not simply killing the kitsune once we've found them?"

"Because they can't reverse the spell on Shikamaru and Sai that way. Can't injure them either because of the same thing."

"What about the ones we rule out as those responsible?"

"No way. We'd have no idea who's telling the truth or not and it'll just cause problems."

"Yes, I recall. You were very thorough with the explanation. But what of injuring them? Their wounds would heal eventually. It seems like the easiest and fastest way to stop them without actually killing them."

"What if we mistake Shikamaru or Sai for one of the real kitsune? I don't wanna be in trouble. Besides, Shikadai and Inojin might get pissed off if we did that. It's their dads, you know?"

"I see. Yes." Mitsuki looked down on the crowd below. "I suppose we cannot disobey a direct order from the Hokage, either. If he ordered us not to harm them then we cannot harm them."

Boruto didn't say anything, pressing his face further into his palm.

"Say, Boruto?"

"Yeah?"

"Your idea about luring the kitsune out was a good one but instead of food, why not try something else? There must be another way to lure them out."

"What do you suggest?"

"I'm not sure. I don't know what kitsune like. Any ideas? You ran into them before, didn't you?"

Boruto shrugged. "It's not like I had a long conversation with one or anything."

Aside from the conversation he had with one kitsune below the mountain a couple months ago, that is, but Boruto chose not to count that as the kitsune was very private and Boruto never got to see its face. He didn't even know he was speaking to a kitsune at the time.

"I'm not too familiar with any of the lore," Mitsuki went on. "If we cannot lure them out with something they like, why not something they hate? I don't know what that would be, but…"

"Something they hate?" Boruto looked at him.

"I got the idea from when we were at the academy together and Shino-sensei had that get-together to welcome me. When those insects swarmed, it sent everyone into a panic. The girls especially. They ran or hid under something, begging someone to do something. I was thinking we could try the same thing. Sometimes fear works better, don't you think?"

Boruto scoffed. "You ever see a group of kids lined up outside the game store for the new release? Or customer appreciation day at the burger place? Or any party that serves sweets? Everybody crowds the dessert table. Himawari and I did the same thing at the palace. I even ate this one thing. I don't know what it was. Some mini cake thing with cream and a hard shell of chocolate. Whatever it was, it was delicious."

Mitsuki's grin broadened. "Desserts, huh? Perhaps if we knew what kitsune liked to eat, the food lure might work better. After all, I don't know if kitsune like the foods we do. Jerky seemed like a good idea because it's meat but maybe they don't like dried things."

"They were raiding the stores. I don't think they'd care if I left it out the way I did. They'd just take it wherever, you know?"

"If only we knew more about them." Mitsuki looked in a different direction, seeing two children chase each other through the crowd. "Hard to believe you and Sarada don't have more information after getting that close to one."

"You were there, too, for part of it."

"True. True." Mitsuki looked down. "I suppose I should, but I don't. I never talked to one. I was only near one for a short amount of time. You and Sarada… Well… The way you were talking, I thought…"

It almost sounded like Mitsuki was disappointed with himself. As if his job were to gather intel and he couldn't do it when it was imperative to the mission. Boruto suspected Mitsuki prided himself on getting information since he was very good at it but being unable to do it this time must have been something Mitsuki took personally though he didn't let it show.

There was one person who had met the kitsune and formed a relationship with them but Boruto didn't want to get her involved. It would be too dangerous and he feared his friends would want to use her as a lure to flush out the kitsune which might not work. Just because they were friends didn't mean she was immune to their power.

Boruto kept his mouth shut, pretending he knew less than he did which Mitsuki immediately picked up on, prompting him to ask these questions. Sensing Boruto was holding back something important, Mitsuki asked again, rephrasing the question but Boruto still wouldn't give him anything.

Finally, he asked, "I suppose you can't wait to become Hokage so you can end this mission faster, am I right?"

Boruto gave Mitsuki an angry look. "How could you even ask that? Becoming Hokage is a waste of time and there's no way I'd want to follow in that idiot's footsteps. The Hokage's useless. He can't do anything. We stand a better chance. The village's going to hell and he's nowhere in sight. Talk about useless, you know?"

Mitsuki smiled. "So it is you, then, Boruto. I was beginning to wonder. I would expect no other answer from you."

Boruto looked at him. "You were testing me?"

"Well, you didn't ask me anything when I showed up initially and I was beginning to suspect you were holding out on me so I thought I'd put it to the test."

"Holding out?"

"I sense there's something you're not telling me."

It wasn't the odd sensual hiss in Mitsuki's tone that compelled him to confess but feeling cornered and knowing he was causing distrust in his friends by hiding it.

"I didn't want to say anything because I want to protect my family," Boruto admitted. "But… my sister was the one who brought the kitsune here in the first place. Only one but the rest followed her. She was hiding him. Talked to him. She said they were friends. Then all this happened."

"Ohh…" Mitsuki blinked, leaning in with interest. "Then she might have valuable information on these kitsune. If we question her, we might be able to end this quickly without resorting to violent methods as I previously suggested."

"I'm not getting her involved. There's no way I'm putting her in danger," Boruto said firmly.

"But if they are truly friends, would she be in danger? We're just asking her a few questions, getting information."

"I'm not risking it." Boruto stubbornly faced the edge of the building again.

"I see. Alright." Mitsuki stood up. "I'd better make my rounds again."

Mitsuki was respecting Boruto's wishes by not badgering him but he could not understand why Boruto would rather waste time like this when they could have more information, if only they go to a reliable source. This method would take much longer with little certainty.

Boruto would rather go on hunches and take risks rather than involve Himawari. It was an odd notion but it was equally fascinating.

Shikadai saw Mitsuki leave the rooftop and disappear from his vantage point outside a café. He had ordered tea so secure himself a table without being asked to leave as the area was reserved for customers only. This way he could have a drink and keep an eye out for anything odd without looking strange himself.

Though on the street itself, the white tables neatly lined up along the wall were enough to keep pedestrians at bay, acting as though an invisible fence had been placed between them. It was the perfect way to keep people from bumping into him while being on the street at the same time. Shikadai even had enough space to react if anyone came his way on purpose or accidentally.

Nursing his cup, Shikadai realized he had almost finished his tea, reflecting just how long he had been sitting at this table. Even the waitress had poked her head out several times to see if he needed anything or was ready to leave so someone else might have the table. He felt a little guilty but the mission was more important than a few customers wanting to read the paper under a parasol fused to a table.

Seeing a person walking his way, he hoped it would all pay off shortly.

Keeping his back to them, Shikadai studied their reflection in the parasol's metal support in front of him. The person looked perfectly normal until their eyes flashed yellow in the metal rod.

They passed Shikadai without incident but he knew what he saw and discreetly alerted the others by sending his shadow after the person, pointing it at them without making contact. The idea was to signal, not to engage. That was for a different party.

The woman continued down the street and Shikadai quickly retreated his shadow, seeing Iwabe tailing the woman along with Sarada. It was up to them to handle the rest.

Sensing the looks, the woman started down a different road but Sarada cut her off and stood in front of her.

"May I help you?" the woman asked, fluent in the human language. However, she was anything but and these children caught on to the farce.

Sarada suspected the woman but tested her anyway. "Could you tell me how to get to the dango shop?" she asked, seeing the key-chain hanging from the woman's bag. It was a freebie the shop gave away to regular customers. Chocho and Anko had the same key-chain.

The woman paused, then pointed in a random direction. "That street and take a left."

Knowing exactly where it was, Sarada knew in an instant that the woman's directions were false. This woman, had she really been herself, would have known the location of the shop with a key-chain like that.

"Could you show me?" Sarada asked innocently. "Is it this one or the next one?"

The woman stepped closer to point more clearly down one of the streets. As soon as she was within range, Iwabe used his staff to shove the woman into an alleyway, out of sight.

In a private area, they could fight freely.

The woman struggled up and looked at the two young ninja. "Why would you do that?" she asked, sounding pained and flustered.

"Cut the crap," growled Iwabe. "We know you're a kitsune."

"Careful," Sarada whispered. "If the woman's possessed, we can't hurt her too badly. It's not her fault."

She was here to make sure Iwabe didn't go overboard and injure an innocent human puppet. They had to free the woman and capture the kitsune, not kill either one of them.

The woman stood with a smirk. "You're very insightful humans. So observant. I'm impressed."

They weren't sure how they would extract the kitsune from the human but Iwabe decided to attack until the kitsune felt threatened enough to try making its escape.

He charged in swinging his staff. He didn't adhere any earth to it, knowing it would cause too much damage but a metal rod would be more than enough to inflict pain.

He went for the woman's shoulder. She cringed, taking the blow on her right side. She wasn't a ninja but that wasn't the reason she couldn't escape in time. It seemed kitsune couldn't maneuver a human body very well and the reflexes were dull.

Sarada wanted to shatter the ground to get the woman off balance but that would draw too much attention. Hand to hand combat would have to do but she was worried about touching the kitsune, fearing it might jump into her body next.

This was no time to worry about that. Iwabe would be there to help if that happened. If she stayed where it was safe, the kitsune would have no reason to leave its host. She had to scare it out.

Iwabe moved aside as Sarada charged and backed the woman against the wall with a flurry of punches, none of which made contact. With nowhere to go, the woman mapped an escape route to the right with her eyes.

Something orange emerged from her chest and dashed to the right, scampering quickly.

"There it is!" Sarada threw a kunai to block its path. It froze in fright then darted to the left.

Momentarily stunned by the sight, Iwabe shook himself and raised his staff to chase it back the way it came. The kitsune jumped from the ground towards Iwabe's chest.

A large hand grasped the kitsune from behind and pulled it back. Chocho's enlarged hand caught the wiggling fox and held it.

"You did it, Chocho!" Sarada praised excitedly.

"Looks like I was just in time." She looked at Sarada. "You got something I can put it in? Carrying it around like this is a pain."

Iwabe offered to construct an earth prison with his jutsu but the girls reminded him that foxes could easily dig their way out. Sarada had no cage on hand but there were plenty of trashcans. They put the kitsune in a dumpster and weighed the lid down with bags of garbage. It was the only thing they could do at the moment.

"It's got enough air in there and there are tiny gaps here and there for it to breathe but none of them are big enough for it to escape. I think this'll work for now."

"Should someone stand guard just in case its friends show up to free it?"

"I don't know. Maybe."

While they figured it out, Mitsuki moved away from the rest of the group to do his own investigation.

They didn't have the time to spy on everyone in hopes of finding a kitsune in the crowd. They needed a faster way to locate them.

He returned to the scene of the crime from the other day where kitsune had run amok in the streets and in convenience stores. By this time, the shops had all cleaned up and there was little evidence to scavenge for. Nevertheless, he tried to piece things together by immersing himself in the area with the most concentration of kitsune.

What stores had they been to? Was there a pattern? What did they eat? What didn't they eat?

This food store complained about people and foxes running out of the shop after opening packages and sampling the food. Everything had been cleaned up, which took Mitsuki to the back of the store. He opened different bags of trash, looking at what had been tossed out recently.

Open bags of food, of course, but the ones with sample bites interested him the most. Different items had human teeth marks in them, one or two bites at most. There was no order to them. Commonly, when eating a candy bar or a piece of meat, people would start at the top and work their way down. These bites were all over the place, being taken from the middle or the side. A piece of cake had been thrown out with a bite mark on the top, as if someone were eating it from above, not the outside and worked inward like most humans.

Other bites looked canine. They had the same disordered sample bites as well.

"Kitsune foxes and kitsune possessed humans," Mitsuki said to himself, making piles in the trash.

They ate just about everything. Meat, candy, fruit, vegetable, chips, cheeses, crackers, breads and even drinks. There seemed to be no method to their sampling. They were trying everything. Some had a few more bite marks than others but those could have been from a kitsune sharing with its partners. None of the food present had been finished.

If they left the food, they may not have liked it. Or they just wanted to taste it. It might not have had anything to do with disliking the food. Curious children sampled different foods all the time and left the rest, so why would kitsune children be any different?

Mitsuki studied the assortment for a while then came to a different revelation.

It might not be what he was seeing but what he wasn't seeing.

This food. They didn't shy away from it. They sampled everything.

Didn't they?

Was there anything they hadn't eaten? Anything in the trash that had no testing bites?

It could have been random, considering how much the store had to offer but Mitsuki was convinced there were some foods the kitsune didn't want to try. Items that either weren't in the pile or items which had no bite marks in them.

He sniffed the different foods but couldn't get a good read on them given he was doing this surrounded by dumpsters. With so many conflicting smells, he had to find another way to do this.

Making a mental note of the foods he had found in the trash, he went inside the store to look at the different products. Walking slowly up and down each aisle, he read the title of each package and the main ingredients of those he had not found in the trash.

He left the store and looked at the other shops nearby. The kitsune hadn't been to all of these stores. It could have been random or it could have been a question of interest. The kitsune had been in an art store for reasons unknown to him since he couldn't understand why kitsune would be interested in anything there. They played with the paints. Was there a reason for that or did circumstances just lead up to that event?

What prompted humans to go into certain stores? Interest? Needs? There were many stores he had never been in before and he could not explain why beyond his lack of necessity to do so. If he did not need new clothes, why go to a clothing store? Others did because they were interested in the latest fashions or there was a sale going on, neither of which interested him usually. Otherwise, he would enter a store because he desired to follow his friends.

He smiled, remembering Boruto excitedly stopping in front of a store to point out an advertisement for the latest game as they walked to get something to eat in the village. How they would be racing to class and he would abruptly stop to read a sign for half-priced burgers or new menu items. Whether they were in a hurry or in the middle of something, Boruto and his friends would stop to look at different things in the area.

Sometimes they would go in because they were curious and sometimes because they wanted something. There was no reason behind it other than the fact that something caught their attention. Sometimes they looked at signs for something new because it was new. Sometimes they looked at signs because they flashed or had an interesting photo but they quickly moved on after realizing it wasn't something that interested them.

"I suppose kitsune are the same way. It has only a little to do with taste. The rest of it has to do with catching their eye."

Mitsuki shut his eyes for a moment, letting the realization soak in.

"If we are so similar, it might be difficult to get their attention if the same reaction can be expected from humans."

He looked from the clothing store to the food store and let his smile widen ever so slightly.

"But it's nice to know they can be deterred just as humans can be. I just hope my observation is correct."

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15:**

After spending a good part of the day observing the people in the shopping area, the group managed to capture three kitsune using their strategy. Only three, however. Boruto knew there were more of them but they couldn't flush out anymore.

Denki came with a large dog carrier to house the captured kitsune. It was just big enough for the trio and locked in the front.

Iwabe suggested they interrogate the kitsune in order to locate the others or at the very least learn how many more they had to catch.

"Like they'd tell us the truth if we asked them," commented Shikadai.

Inojin peeked through the front of the carrier to study the foxes inside. They were so close together in their confinement that they looked like a large orange blanket with three heads.

"None of these guys are our dads," he said and tossed a tarp over the opening to hide them from sight.

"We know there's more but how many more is the question."

"It took us hours but we managed to catch three from observing people."

"Yeah, that took way too long. There's gotta be a faster way to do this."

"It's the middle of the afternoon. What happens when it gets dark?"

"We keep searching."

"Really? What a pain. I thought we'd sleep on it and get a fresh start in the morning."

"We can't do that, Chocho."

"Hey, I don't know about you guys but I'm totally useless if I don't get some rest and some food. So…"

Mitsuki arrived and noticed the dog carrier, commenting on the good idea.

Since he had been missing for some time, Boruto asked him a question to determine if he was really Mitsuki. He was asked to use his jutsu but wasn't told which one. Mitsuki assumed and stretched his arm like a snake and coiled it briefly around Boruto to prove himself and brought his arm back to his side.

"Where have you been?" Boruto asked him. "You ran off and we got worried you had been possessed or something."

"I was doing my own investigating."

"We're supposed to stay together."

"I'm sorry, Boruto, but I think I've found some useful information we can use to make our search go much faster."

Boruto was still annoyed but agreed to hear him out anyway. Even apologizing, Mitsuki didn't seem to grasp the gravity of the situation, sounding very blasé as usual.

"Ok, let's hear it."

Mitsuki eyed the dog carrier and motioned for Boruto to come closer.

"Remember what I said about luring them out with something they hated? I think that might be the best way to go."

"How?"

"I was investigating their activities from the other day and noticed that there are some things kitsune just don't do or try to avoid. I noticed that they seem to enjoy bland food. When they stole food the other day, none of the food was spicy. They left that alone. I think they don't like it."

"So what? A bunch of people don't like spicy food. What are we supposed to do, make everyone in the village eat spicy food and attack anyone who refuses?"

"No, but it is something to keep in mind. I also noticed that they seem to be able to tolerate a good amount of human food. Candy, for example, does not seem to upset their stomachs. They will eat just about anything, except spicy foods. They also seem to share foods with their comrades."

"How does that help us?"

"I'm not sure yet, but I found it interesting."

Boruto sighed. It wasn't what he was hoping for and he doubted this information would help them but he was grateful to Mitsuki for having tried.

"This is taking forever!" Iwabe snarled. "There's got to be a faster way to do this. Boruto, is there anything you're not telling us that could help us move this along?"

"I know as much as you do at this point."

"His sister would know more but he refuses to let us speak with her," said Mitsuki.

Boruto glared at him. "Mitsuki!"

"What? Did I say something wrong?"

"Your sister?" Iwabe asked. "What's she got to do with this?"

"Oh, she's the one who brought the kitsune here in the first place."

Boruto covered Mitsuki's mouth but the damage was done.

"She brought them here? She's got information on them we can use? Why didn't you say anything?"

"Because I didn't want to get her involved. I'm not putting my little sister in danger."

"But if she's got information, it could really help us. You'd rather let the village suffer? Wouldn't that put her in danger, too?"

Boruto looked away, gritting his teeth.

"If you were looking to keep our families out of this, you're too late, Boruto," said Shikadai. "My dad is a fox and so is Inojin's. Our families are involved."

"You can't really keep your family out of this given that the Hokage's got his hands full with this issue and your sister apparently knows something about them," said Inojin. "I don't see how asking can do any damage. How'll that put her in danger?"

"What if she's a fox and she gives us all the wrong information?" asked Chocho.

"Not helping here, Chocho."

"Boruto," Sarada told him gently, seeing the conflicted look on his face. "If this could help us, why not try it? If she can tell us something useful, it might help us end this today which would end up keeping her safe. The longer we drag this out…"

"I know that," Boruto said sharply. Then he sighed and said in an even tone, "I don't know if she would be willing to betray their trust, you know? She said they're her friends. If I tell her we need to learn their weaknesses so we can attack them, she might not want to. She could even hate us for it."

"Then we won't tell her about attacking them," said Denki.

"But she'll want to know why we need their weaknesses."

"Just ask her for information on them, good and bad," said Inojin. "I'm sure she'd be happy to tell you all about her new friends."

Boruto wasn't convinced this was a good idea. It sounded so easy and it might make their mission easier but that was what worried him. If it was too easy…

He still didn't know if a kitsune was waiting for this, either in the group or watching from around the corner. What if Himawari had kept a kitsune in the house and it overheard them? What if she refused to answer his questions because it was in the room? What if a fox wasn't involved but she still didn't want to tell them the truth for personal reasons? What if she knew as much as they did and Boruto wasted his time and put her in danger with nothing to show for it?

If his family and friends weren't involved, he would have come out of the gate swinging. Now he had to be mindful of those he could trample on his way out and anyone handcuffed to his swinging fists.

His actions, careless or not, had an effect on everyone. It was a lot to shoulder.

Meanwhile, his father had disappeared without a trace. Had he been captured, possessed or transformed? Or was he as useless as ever and left them to take care of everything while he did pointless paperwork or public appearances?

He probably had no idea what Boruto was going through.

* * *

The kitsune took another break in the woods after demonstrating additional hunting skills and tricks to find water. Shikamaru and Sai were grateful for another rest, feeling ragged from constant movement.

Thankfully all their training was paying off. The muscles in their shoulders felt stronger and could run without tripping. Their sped had increased as well, now able to keep up with the kitsune so they didn't have to stop and wait for them to catch up or look back to make sure they were still following. However, the real kitsune were always in the lead.

During their rest, Sai asked the kitsune a question out of pure curiosity.

"I'm aware of the circumstances of your encounter with Naruto. It happened during our mission years ago at the prince's palace. After our mission was over, Naruto told us a lot about his adventures with you and spoke of you fondly. Naruto didn't give too many details but I could tell he loved every second of his time with you."

"We are friends and we consider him a member of our pack," said Seki.

"But I have to wonder, how you ended up in those circumstances to begin with. The prince was replaced by a kitsune. We battled those two kitsune sometime later after our mission but I'm not sure if I remember the details of the first fox. Was he an enemy you've faced before? Why would he target the prince? I'm curious."

The three kitsune exchanged looks. Then Aurora said, "It's a long story and to explain it properly, we'd have to go back a bit in our history."

"I'm still interested if you're willing to tell us."

Whether they were humoring Sai or actually wanted people to know the truth was unclear, but Shikamaru was equally pleased when the kitsune agreed to tell them the story, curious himself.

"You see," said Seki, "the land surrounding the mountain was ours first. Humans came and settled there after we had established it as our home many years prior."

Shikamaru and Sai looked at each other.

"You were there first?"

"Correct," said Aurora. "The humans invaded our land. Before that, most of the area was forest. There were countless fruit trees and the river branched out through a clearing were animals grazed. When the humans arrived, they began to cut down trees and redirected the river to build a farm."

"They came into our territory and started taking over," said Seki. "The construction for their home was destruction to ours. Food was plentiful before their arrival. Their activities destroyed many fruit trees and edible plant life we and other animals could eat. They drove the wildlife away and those that remained were hunted for meat."

"The humans were wasteful," complained Aurora. "They would only consume part of the animal and throw the rest away. When our kind tried to scavenge the carcass, the humans attacked us. We were hungry and they were wasting food. We could have eaten that meat but we were treated like pests. Because of their reckless hunting, there was less for us to eat and half their kills went to waste."

"It was infuriating."

"So our kind decided to fight back. We tried to frighten the humans away using our fox magic, making them believe the location was haunted or home to dangerous beasts. But that backfired. More hunters entered what remained of our forest to try to find these beasts. We kept using our fox magic to drive them away, possessing them so we could tell the other humans to leave. Nothing seemed to work. They kept doing what they were doing."

"They encroached on our forest. They were going to tear it all down. We had to fight back for our home. And finally, our fox fire tricks gained the attention of their king who came to settle the matter."

"He asked the kitsune why they were doing this and the kitsune explained that the humans were demolishing their home. That the kitsune were there first and the humans were taking over. The king had no idea the land had already been claimed and apologized. However, the king also mentioned that they had settled on our land because they had nowhere to go. They had been traveling for some time, searching for a place to call home. They had lost several people along their travels due to illness and fatigue because they had been constantly moving. Any existing places would not take them and this was the only land where humans had not yet settled and showed promise for a sustainable home."

"The king asked if there was any way for them to stay. Our leader took pity on the humans and the two leaders agreed to share the land. The humans had to stop tearing down trees near the mountain but could build in the other direction. Many projects were halted but the humans were able to build their town near the mountain, including the king's palace."

"The forest you see when you visit our land is what the humans left us after our meeting."

"So basically, you drew a line down the middle and told the humans they could have one half and you would keep the other," said Shikamaru.

"The king?" questioned Sai. "When we arrived, there was only a prince for his parents had passed. Was this king the prince's father?"

The kitsune shook their heads. "Grandfather. Perhaps even great-grandfather. Hard to keep track of the human generations."

"You've been alive for that long?" Sai said, astonished.

"No, we were not born yet. These actions were those of our ancestors. When we were born, we were told the stories so our history may be preserved."

"Depending on our tails, we could live that long. But we do age and die eventually. Kitsune can be killed, you know."

"So what about the kitsune who replaced the prince?" asked Shikamaru.

"We're getting to that."

"When we were pups, the rule about not entering the town had not been established yet. When food was scarce, we would go into town to gather food from trash bins and things. While there, we would practice our fox magic on the humans. Sometimes to cloak ourselves and sometimes for a laugh. Kitsune love to pull pranks."

"We would cast illusions to frighten humans, give them a good start. Then we'd run off. It was all in good fun."

"Once we were casting an illusion to frighten a child but the little girl burst into tears. We could not bring ourselves to leave the child crying so we stayed to cheer her up with fun illusions and left her laughing."

"We did not intend to make anyone cry. Only startle them. We felt bad when we did that one time and made something happy instead of scary."

"The humans were used to this but a couple complained to the king and we were asked to stop. After learning we were going into town for food, the king made a deal with us. In exchange for not entering the town, we were to be given offerings. The food humans wasted would go to us rather than the trash so that we may eat."

"Recycling," Sai said with a smile.

"This method worked and there was peace."

"Until Reevo voiced his complaints," said Aurora. "He's the kitsune you were curious about."

"He replaced the prince?"

"He did."

"Why?"

Aurora explained, "Reevo knew the stories and learned of the new rules we had to abide by and was displeased. He questioned why we were catering to the invaders. The humans invaded our territory, took over our land, destroyed trees and earth and reduced the food supply both parties needed and we had to listen to them? This was our land first yet we had to obey the human's rules? They told us what we could have and changed our way of life so that they may feel more comfortable? It did not seem fair to him and questioned why we went along with it."

"Some of us had to agree, wondering where the fairness in our arrangement was. It seemed we were getting the short end of the stick."

"The leader would not permit any of us to take action against the humans, therefore, we could do nothing. All Reevo could do was complain. The leader explained that using this method, there would be peace and both sides could benefit. As long as we heeded human wishes, they would not harm us. Humans passed a law against hunting and the use of traps. Any violators were punished. We were given offerings which would otherwise go to waste, which helped us when we could not hunt or forage."

"Of course, Reevo pointed out that there would not be a food shortage if the humans hadn't driven them off or cut down the fruit trees."

"We ate the pests humans wanted to rid themselves of. Rats and mice ran rampant until we hunted them down and reduced the population which suited the humans well."

"But Reevo was still upset that we could not live as we did before due to human restrictions. We could not use our fox magic or move freely and our old way of life had to change."

"He would watch the humans from the trees and his anger turned to envy. Reevo came to believe that humans had a better life by comparison. They got everything so easily and lived luxurious lives. They were safe from the elements in their homes, they did not have to hunt or forage with their stores and kitchens. Humans seemed to have a better life. They could do as they wished and did not have to struggle as we did."

"Reevo came to believe that humans only saw us as animals. That our lives did not matter compared to a human's. That theirs had more value. What did our hardships matter as long as they could live comfortably? If an animal bothered them in any way or became inconvenient, all the humans had to do was complain and someone would settle it to their liking. We were a nuisance and yet if we viewed humans the same way, nothing would change. We would be told to deal with it and if we complained more, further restrictions against us would take place."

"Believing this, Reevo decided that humans had a better life and he wanted it for himself. He wanted the power to do as he pleased and have no restrictions. He did not want to live under a human's thumb but be the human himself."

"Our leader passed and we were left without someone to follow. Reevo gained a second tail, giving him additional power but as soon as it happened, he left the group, saying he was under no obligation to stay and wished for a better life. A life his new tail could bring him."

"He never returned to the mountain."

"Good thing he left, though. In accordance with our rules, the kitsune with the most tails became the next leader."

"Meaning we would have to follow him."

Shikamaru frowned. "Just because of his number of tails, you would have followed Reevo's orders? Even if he led you down the wrong path?"

"Those are our rules. Does it not work that way for you, as well?" asked Seki. "If a king ordered his people to do something, would they not have to obey? Or the ninja leader, the Hokage. If they ordered you to enter war, even if you did not want to fight, would you not have to go anyway?"

It was simplistic logic but no less true to an extent. The people would have to follow their leader, no matter the order. Punishment would befall anyone who did not. This was why revolts took place and people would try to overthrow their leaders because they disagreed with them so strongly and wished to free the people for this tyranny.

Royalty followed a bloodline. The king who made this deal with them could have had a less than understanding descendant who did away with the rules and mercilessly kill the kitsune just to end their complaints and continue the construction as originally planned. The king understood that they were invading but had nowhere else to go. They managed to reach an understanding but not every human could be so amenable.

Knowing this, Shikamaru acknowledged that the kitsune really lucked out. Things could have been much worse, but Reevo did not see that and only focused on the negatives of their situation.

"A little while after Reevo disappeared, the offerings suddenly stopped," Seki continued. "We had to rely solely on hunting and gathering which was wrought with issues."

"The animals were being hunted to extinction so we had to stop and wait for them to repopulate," said Reki. "The plants we ate had to grow back which would take months. We were starving. There wasn't enough for us and without a leader to take charge we had to decide things for ourselves by putting things to a vote."

"But even then, some wanted to do things their way and no one had the authority to stop them. Eventually we realized that if we didn't go into town for food, we would not survive. With the offerings gone, there was nothing keeping us from going into town anyway. That was our deal."

Aurora glanced sadly at Seki and Reki. "During one trip into town, a human killed their older brother who tried to protect them. Seeing such animosity kindled a fear of humans in some and hatred in others."

To not dwell on such things, Seki went on with the explanation. "Some of our kitsune friends and family were starting to disappear and we did not know what became of them. We realized that Reevo was most likely the cause."

"He wished for a human life, thinking it would be better, so we believed he had taken the form of a human which he could do now with his new tail. He was most likely cursing those who discovered his true identity in order to keep it secret."

"With Naruto's help, we discovered that Reevo had replaced the prince and had used his position of power to end the offerings and hire hunters to target us. He probably took the prince's position because of his stature. He could make the rules and lived a pampered lifestyle. It was ideal for him, I think."

"We also think he took away the offerings so he would have an excuse to attack us, knowing we would either come into the town or starve to death. He probably wanted us dead because we could fight back and for revenge because we held him back."

"He was beyond reason at that point," said Aurora with a sigh. "He tried to kill all of us and he did not care what his rule would do to the humans as long as he could have his way."

"I can understand his animosity towards humans, given what happened in your past," said Sai. "It's like if someone came to the Leaf and backed us into a corner while they claimed it as their new home. Once we agree to a truce and divide the village between us, they restrict us even further by making it illegal to use jutsu. We're ninja. It's important to us and a part of what makes us shinobi. Jutsu and fox fire are very similar in this situation."

"The prince is now king and he works to strengthen our relations and maintain balance and peace between us," said Aurora. "Ryosuke and the king meet with each other, which is something our kind has rarely done. Encountering a kitsune is a rare thing indeed but even rarer to meet with one as strong as Ryosuke and on a regular basis. Even our leader in the past only met with the king a couple of times and only when things reached a point."

"Maybe that's why things are working so well for you now," suggested Sai.

"I think it's because Ryosuke and the king understand both sides on the matter. And we've come to know that we cannot blame everyone for the actions of a few. Reevo was the only one who launched an attack and yet some wished to blame us because he came from our group. Naruto had come to know us well and knew we were not responsible. He also noticed that both sides suffered and benefited, depending."

"I'm glad that the king is trying to make our lives easier and work together with us. Rather than force things on us, he is asking if it is something we would want and how we can make some things work," said Reki. "The kings of the past did not do that. They told us what they wanted and had us do it. Sure, we got something in return, but still."

"And the offerings are still going, right?" asked Sai.

"They have not stopped since."

"So you haven't been in the town since then, either."

"Only seen it from the trees and top of the mountain. Ryosuke is the only one permitted to enter but only in emergencies or to meet with the king. Which the king is fine with. He even seems to find it amusing that glimpses of our movements spark wonder and excitement in some humans, especially children."

"Yes, but his son, the new prince, kept trying to see us and we had to send him back each time."

"A mountain is too dangerous for such young humans. We would not want to be blamed if he were to be injured in our territory."

Shikamaru was only half listening, remembering what the kitsune had said about the offerings and the different generations.

The kitsune who invaded the Leaf had never been in a human town before. They had only seen it and were told not to enter. Himawari invited them to the Leaf so that they may see how humans lived with their own eyes.

A group of five-year-old children seeing something for the first time. The Leaf must have looked like an amusement park to them.

Reevo's understanding of human life was flawed but it also held some truth. Human life wasn't without its struggles but from their perceptive, it must have been the equivalent of a homeless man peering into a mansion just as the family sat down to feast.

Two different worlds and little understanding until it was either observed or explained.

Naruto understood that before he had. He knew the kitsune didn't know any better and were overexcited.

Restricted from doing what came naturally to them and suddenly given the ok to cut loose.

Not to mention being in a new location and being unfamiliar with their customs. How many times had Shikamaru been traveling and found himself being told not to do something he normally did because that just wasn't the way of that village or home?

Maybe he had been in the office too long and forgotten the ambiguity of the world. Perhaps his perspective changed when he became a father and grew concerned for his son.

He wasn't just thinking about the mess they had to clean up in the village, he was worried about his son's well-being; if he had been hurt or scared or trapped.

"I'm sorry."

The kitsune and Sai looked at him.

"For what?"

"I… I was narrow-minded," Shikamaru admitted. "I thought Naruto was being too lenient with the kitsune. He understood better than I did. I'm sorry I didn't see it before."

He had to laugh at himself, remembering how Temari would lecture him about being too lenient with Shikadai when he got in trouble at school. How he knew his son didn't intentionally do anything bad and that he was just following Boruto's lead, which was good because Boruto needed someone like his son to talk reason into him sometimes.

He wasn't harsh when it came to his son's actions or lack thereof, but he got more involved when it came to events beyond Shikadai's control which could bring harm to him. His instinct was to protect his child and became angry when something threatened him. That must have been why he wanted the kitsune young to be punished, not released into the care of their leader.

Naruto had the right idea in another sense. If Shikadai had been in trouble in a different village, he would have wanted to be the one to punish him, not the outsiders. He had his own parenting style and perspective. He wanted to discipline his own child, not a stranger or another village. He would judge whether or not his son did anything wrong and what was to be done if he had.

The kitsune might have been animals but he imagined they felt the same way when it came to their own children. Naruto was right to let Ryosuke handle it. He would be able to explain things in a way kitsune could understand. A human might just confuse them further.

"Don't worry," said Aurora. "Sometimes humans do things we believe are intended to harm us or to spite us but then we learn that it is not as we thought. When humans play, sometimes we think they are trying to torment us. Children coming into the forest are not hunting us but playing a game."

"We're sorry the pups caused you trouble," said Seki. "But it did bring us together again, for which I am grateful."

"Yeah." Shikamaru grinned. "Me, too, actually."

* * *

We got a little more background on the kitsune in this chapter.

Please review! ^-^


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16:**

After much coaxing, Boruto agreed to visit Himawari but only on the condition he do so alone.

Making sure his friends were across the street and having them promise to stay there under the assumption anyone who disobeyed was a kitsune spy, Boruto opened the gate to his front yard and closed it behind him. He waited a moment then climbed the steps to the front door. He looked around several times to be sure he wasn't followed and entered his home.

He could hear his mother in the next room, cleaning. So far, she hadn't noticed him. If she had, she would have called out. He tiptoed up the stairs to his sister's room to speak with her.

Hinata smirked in the next room, scanning the house with her Byakugan and seeing her son creep upstairs. "So he came for advice after all."

Boruto knocked gently on his sister's door and pushed his way in when she answered. He closed the door and began to look in her open closet and under the bathrobe she left draped over the back of her desk chair, making sure they were alone.

"What's wrong, Big Brother?" she asked innocently.

"Himawari, what's the name of the jutsu you and Mom can use?"

"Jutsu?" She cocked her head. "You mean the Byakugan?"

He breathed a sigh of relief. "Never mind. I wanted to ask you something in private."

"What is it?"

"The fox thing you brought home the other day," he said. "You know, the one you hid from us."

She looked down shamefully, still feeling guilty for her actions even though Naruto told her he wasn't upset. She was more embarrassed by the result, seeing the damage the kitsune caused and how she had failed to restrain them.

"I'm not mad," Boruto assured her. "I just wanted to know more about them."

"Really?" She glanced up.

"Yeah, I mean, you barely said anything about them and I was curious, you know?"

She gave him a suspicious look, wondering why he would show a sudden interest in the kitsune. It was odd for him to be so secretive unless he was up to something. He was even sneaking around their mother.

"Why?" she asked.

"I just wanted to know. I'm curious."

"Well…"

"Please, Himawari? If it's that hard for you, I can make it up to you or something. I thought you'd want to tell me about it."

Himawari didn't know what Boruto would do with this information but the village should have been free of her furry friends by now so she didn't see the harm in telling him. It wasn't like he was going to go after them for revenge… was he?

"You're not going to go after them, are you?" she asked, giving him a desperate look. "You're not going to hurt them, right?"

"What? No, of course not."

"They're my friends. They didn't mean it. They just didn't understand."

"I know that, Hima."

"They said they were sorry. And… And if you go after them because of something I said… I'd be betraying their trust, right? They'd probably never forgive me. They're my friends. I don't want to…"

She looked very upset. Boruto suspected that if anything happened to those foxes, she would never forgive him. She would probably blame him if his friends did something because she trusted him with this information. She might even be angry at herself and Boruto didn't think he could stomach that. He hated seeing her upset and being upset with herself was something he didn't know how to handle. How could he possibly make her feel better if that happened?

"Himawari, I promise I'm not going to hurt them. I just wanted to know more about them because they're your friends. And if they're your friends, there's no way I'd hurt them. You believe that, don't you?"

Her pout diminished and she slowly nodded her head. "Uh-huh."

"Plus, if I know more about them, I can make sure a misunderstanding doesn't happen again."

"Yeah, I guess so. Ok."

They sat on her bed and Boruto asked her if there was anything she could tell him about the kitsune. She still seemed reluctant but told him that they were playful and friendly. She gave him bits and pieces of information which Boruto had to pull out of her.

"They like playing tag," she said. "We played it together. It was fun."

"Anything else?"

"Most of them are afraid of humans because a human once killed a friend of theirs. They showed me the grave. They said the fox was trying to protect its brothers and a human killed it. The brothers survived but they're afraid to go near humans after that."

"They had a grave for him?" Boruto didn't think kitsune could construct something so human. Weren't they animals?

"They make friends with other animals. They said they befriended a horse once."

"Anything else?"

"Um…" Himawari tried to think. She didn't want to give away too much. "They bury food they don't eat."

"What about their powers? I saw some of their abilities but I was wondering if that was it."

"They told me that they're more powerful depending on how many tails they have. One-tailed foxes are weakest but can still do stuff. Illusions and possession."

"Is that all they can do?" Boruto knew they could transform people but the kitsune responsible had two tails. Apparently kitsune with only one couldn't do that.

"Their power increases with their tails. The ones I talked to all had one tail, so they said they were pretty limited and were inexperienced. They're still trying to learn all their powers and get stronger which is why they came here to play and train."

"I see."

"But… Um…" Himawari remembered something they mentioned looking forward to once they gained a second tail. "Kitsune with two or more can use transformation."

"Like turning people into things?"

She shook her head. "No, turn themselves into other people like ninja can. Their powers are kind of similar to ours, I noticed."

The slow start might have been worth it to learn this. He didn't realize Kitsune could transform themselves. This meant a person didn't have to be possessed. They could actually be a fox. Now they had to be on the look-out for duplicates.

"Anything else?" he pressed gently.

She shrugged. "They wanted to know more about people and what a village was like."

"Thanks, Hima." Boruto got up from the bed. "I owe you."

"Just don't hurt them if you find one and don't go after them for revenge. I told you, they didn't mean it."

"Don't worry. I'm not going for revenge. I promise."

He meant it and she sensed this. Boruto thanked her again and quickly left, leaving the door open a crack in his haste. This information would have to be good enough.

Himawari sighed and sat back down on the bed. She could hear his voice faintly from the open window as he dashed across the street to meet up with his friends. Then all was quiet.

"Your concern for us is most admirable and you have my gratitude."

Himawari looked up to see a kitsune perched in her open window. She saw one tail then a second. She wondered if it was hiding any more but could not see from her position.

"You're a kitsune. An older one, aren't you?"

"I am. My name is Sonar. I have been following your brother and his friends through the village."

"Why?"

"Naruto asked us to play a game with him though he does not know it."

"Daddy did? A secret game?"

"Yes," said Sonar. "And I also wish to thank you for trying to look after our pups."

"I did a pretty bad job of it, though," she said sadly.

"Your heart was in the right place and they were all returned to us unharmed."

"They said they wanted to meet Daddy so I brought them here."

"I know. We told them stories about Naruto so it is only natural they wish to meet the legend in person."

Sonar looked behind him then faced Himawari with a smile.

"Those two needed training but training can be fun. And rewarding," he said thoughtfully, as if to convince himself of something. "I see no reason for them to have all the fun."

Himawari cocked her head, confused and curious.

Sonar gave her a foxy grin. "Would you like to share something with Naruto?"

She nodded immediately.

"With your permission, would you like to see what it's like to be a kitsune?"

She nodded again.

"Then consider this a reward and an experience."

Sonar motioned her forward with his paw. She stepped closer and Sonar placed his paw on her chest.

"Curse."

It was a strange, warm feeling, washing over her like water. Her plunge sent her short hair fluttering and her limbs tingled. She shut her eyes tight, unsure of what was happening. When she opened them, she was looking up at Sonar rather than staring straight ahead.

She looked to the side and saw her bed. She couldn't see the top. She looked to the other side and could see under her desk. Had she fallen down? She felt like she was standing but she was so much shorter now. She wasn't sure what happened.

Sonar smiled broadly and told her, "You're now a kitsune. Enjoy it while it lasts."

"A kitsune?" she said slowly and looked down. Paws. She jolted in alarm which turned to awe when she discovered they were her own. She spun in a circle to look behind her, finding a swishing tail.

She hurried across her room to look in the mirror. She saw her furry reflection staring back at her. The same eyes she saw everyday but her face was covered in orange fur and she had pointy ears on the top of her head. She reached up with both paws to touch them, examining herself from head to tail.

A big smile spread across her face and she squealed in delight. She started bouncing happily on all fours, cheering, "I'm a fox, I'm a fox!"

She started running around her room, bumping into her chair and the side of her bed, unused to her new body, but was undeterred. She bounded atop her bed and sprang to her desk and back to the floor.

"I'm a fox! I'm a fox!"

Sonar started laughing at her glee, loving her excitement.

"Thank you, thank you!" she told him as she ran. "This is so much fun!"

"Enjoy it. Enjoy being a fox for a day."

"I will, I will! I'm a fox!"

Giggling, she zoomed around her room again and again then over to her door. She wedged her nose into the small opening and pushed her way into the hall. Sonar did not stop her, turning to watch over Boruto and his friend as instructed.

Himawari galloped and tumbled down the stairs then skidded over to the kitchen door. She pushed it open with her nose and scrambled through, running excitedly around the kitchen and living room as fast as she could.

"Mommy! Mama, I'm a fox! I'm a fox! Look! I'm a fox!" She jumped from the couch to the coffee table and across the kitchen floor and back.

Hinata was shocked to see her daughter in this form but relieved to see her enjoyment. "I didn't think your father would ask them to do this."

"He didn't! Sonar did! The kitsune told me it was a reward and sharing something with Daddy."

"He did, huh?" Hinata didn't know if Himawari was aware of what that meant but she understood. The kitsune must have seen something in Himawari which inspired him to act, transforming her into a kitsune as well.

The reward could have been for a number of things, but Hinata wondered if it was because of Himawari's encounter with the kitsune and her understanding of them. She was sympathetic to them so perhaps this transformation was to show her what it was truly like to be a fox.

So far, she was having lots of fun, so Hinata let her daughter enjoy herself, watching her leap and run around the room, giggling all the while.

* * *

"What did she say?" Iwabe pressured when Boruto came back.

The group followed Boruto away from the house. He would not speak to them until they were far away from his home just in case.

This gave Boruto some time to think about his answer.

Should he tell them kitsune could use transformation as well? It was a new ability and useful to know just in case two identical people showed up. Though it didn't really change anything. They still had to show restraint, whether it was possession or transformation. They couldn't hurt the kitsune. Knowing a kitsune could be transformed might make some consider using more force because they weren't attacking a human. They might also panic, knowing of another ability kitsune possessed.

Boruto shook his head, frowning at the thought.

These were his friends. He had to trust them and he did. Otherwise, he wouldn't have asked for their help. He had to inform them of this new information. If he didn't, it equated to mistrust. If he couldn't trust his friends, what did he have? What did that make him?

Safely away from his house, he turned and told his friends, "Himawari told me that kitsune could use something similar to a transformation jutsu. They can turn themselves into people if they're strong enough."

Shikadai growled, learning of this ability. "So not only can they transform people into animals, kitsune can turn themselves into people. I was wondering about that."

"It sorta makes sense they could do that," said Inojin. "But still, this makes things a little more complicated."

"I don't see how," said Mitsuki. "Transformation and possession are very similar, only one has a real body and the other is a mask. It still doesn't change the fact that we cannot hurt them."

"Yeah, but knowing a person could have been possessed made it easier for us to know we couldn't hurt them because we would be attacking an innocent person. Now that we know it could be a kitsune transformed, some of us might not hold back," said Shikadai, eyeing Iwabe and Boruto.

"It still doesn't change the fact that we are not allowed to harm the kitsune we find," reasoned Mitsuki. "That is why I said there was little difference. We're under orders not to. Therefore, this information is almost useless."

"I knew I was taking a risk telling you guys about the transformation thing but I trust all of you," said Boruto. "I wouldn't have said anything if I didn't believe you would hold back even knowing it could be a fox. We made it clear again and again that we cannot hurt the kitsune if we expect to get everything back to normal and that hasn't changed."

"But that doesn't mean everyone will listen," said Mitsuki. "After all, only Shikadai and Inojin's fathers have been transformed that we know of. Their lives are the ones at stake. Meaning that people like Iwabe and Sarada and everyone else have nothing to lose."

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Iwabe.

"I'm saying that there is nothing keeping you from going all out against the enemy since they did not take anything important from you. Shikadai and Inojin won't because it involves their fathers but there is nothing keeping us from doing it. Put simply, if I were in your position, I would see no reason not to harm the kitsune. After all, it is not my parent who was attacked, therefore, whatever happens to them does not affect me."

"You're suggesting I'm so heartless I would risk the lives of my friend's parents because it's no concern of mine? Is that it?" Iwabe spat angrily. "I can't believe you would say that."

"I'm not saying that you would. I'm merely pointing out the lack of concern this poses others in a similar position. Knowing we might come across an actual kitsune, could you say that none of us would find an excuse not to hurt it if given the chance? If it meant ending the battle quickly, I would if presented with the opportunity. But I wouldn't because it would upset my friends too much and we're under orders from the Hokage not to."

"And showing restraint can get frustrating over time," added Sarada, knowing what Mitsuki was trying to say. "Eventually, we're going to lose our tempers and use force just to end the fight. Having little risk to yourself is just one factor making the decision even easier."

"I don't see how this information is supposed to help us," said Chocho. "It doesn't tell us how to find the kitsune and like you guys said, this new power of theirs doesn't change anything. The way I see it, we're in the same position as before. Didn't your sister tell you a weakness or something?"

Boruto shook his head. "No. She just told me about that power and how kitsune with more tails are more powerful."

"The lore supports that," said Denki.

"Other than that, she said they're very playful. They like to play tag and they can make friends with other animals and they bury any food they don't eat."

"You sure about that last one?" asked Inojin. "When they were running around the village the other day, they left a ton of food in the street and in the shops."

"Maybe they could not bury it while possessing a human form," offered Metal. "Average human nails cannot tear into the earth with the same ease as an animal could. Or perhaps they were distracted. Chased off by people before they had the chance."

"I think it's the last one, most likely," said Denki. "People kept chasing them around and around. They probably couldn't."

"Did you at least ask her how many there were so we can keep track of how many we need to find?" asked Sarada.

Boruto shrugged. "She never met all of them. There were about ten one-tailed kitsune but they're easy to spot and their leader brought them back to their home."

"Maybe they missed a couple."

"A two-tailed kitsune attacked our dads. Does she know how many there are of them?"

"She didn't meet any."

"Great," said Shikadai. "So we could be looking for a dozen or a million. How do we know if we have them all?"

"Again, why not ask the kitsune we captured?" asked Metal. "They should know."

"But they could lie to us. And jutsu won't work on them. Even if Inojin knew how to use his mother's jutsu, he couldn't use it on them to make them tell."

"What about bribing them?"

"With what? A game of tag? What would they want?"

"Food, maybe?"

The group continued to argue and Boruto was at wits end.

All day. It took them all day to round up three and still had no idea where to find the rest or how many of them there were. They did more talking than anything else and it wasn't getting them anywhere.

He told his friends the truth because he trusted them but it just led to more uncertainty. It didn't speed anything up. If anything, it was slowing them down.

What was the use in all this? How could they reach a solution? Where were they supposed to look? How many kitsune were there? What could he do?

All this talking was pointless. They needed to find the kitsune. Without knowing where or how, they were stuck going in circles. He was so sick of talking since it was getting them nowhere.

He looked at each friend as they pointed out possibilities only to get shut down by another. Flaws were tossed back and forth and anyone who didn't want to get involved or had nothing to contribute stood back to watch.

Metal and Chocho were the only two who stayed back to wait for the argument to end. Denki tried looking something up on his laptop, tossing out bits of information here and there which was ultimately shut down by the others. Inojin even tried to close the laptop for him after a certain point. Sarada argued with Iwabe and Shikadai made snide comments and pointed out flaws every now and then. Mitsuki voiced his thoughts which either disturbed or annoyed the others or led to another argument.

Boruto was about to shout over all of them when he noticed a very small detail in the mix of things.

Chocho was munching on her chips, watching everyone with her usual look. Which was normal, but it was the flavor of chips she was eating that caught Boruto's attention.

She ate a variety of chips but she had clear favorites. She also had ones she openly denounced because of their lackluster flavor or texture.

Right now, she was eating a bag of salted chips. Sea salt flavor.

It seemed too simplistic for her palate. She would eat them if she depleted the rest of her reserves but her bag had plenty of barbecue and spicy pepper flavors left. Instead of reaching for any of those, she went for the mildest flavor, intentionally pushing aside her clear favorites.

Mitsuki mentioned something about the food the kitsune left behind and the food they simply did not consume. He brushed it off as useless information but now he was reconsidering it.

Chocho acted like Chocho. She was pretty laid-back and enjoyed snacking more than arguing. Although, instead of calling Himawari by her name, she referred to her as 'your sister' while addressing Boruto. It wasn't a huge deal since Iwabe did the same thing, but Boruto's growing suspicion had him scrutinizing every detail.

He had left them alone when he talked to Himawari. Before he left, he was certain everyone was everyone they should be. But no one had bothered to ask a question upon his return and no one even considered asking each other since they had been together the whole time.

What if a kitsune had sneaked up and..?

"Chocho," Boruto said loud enough to gain everyone's attention.

"Hm?" she asked in the middle of chewing.

"Can I have some chips?"

She paused then went into her bag and handed him the curry flavored chips. "Sure. Here."

Boruto opened the bag and ate one. His friends were all giving him annoyed and confused looks, wondering why his demeanor had changed so suddenly.

Boruto held the open bag out for Chocho. "Here, have some."

"I'm good," she said. "I have others and I'm kind of in the middle of this bag."

"I feel bad taking it. You have some. Just one."

Chocho wrinkled her nose, smelling the spices. "Really, I'm good. I don't want any."

Boruto pulled the bag back. "Yeah. I forgot. You don't really like spicy things, do you?"

"Not really, no."

Boruto grabbed her wrist and flung her into the center of the group with all his might.

"What are you doing?" she asked, pulling herself onto her elbow.

"Chocho loves the curry flavored chips and you refused to even eat one. You're only eating the sea salt flavor. Which means you're not Chocho," he declared.

She looked around the group. "Guys… You don't think..? I was just eating a different flavor. It doesn't prove anything. Boruto's paranoid."

Suspecting Boruto might have been on to something, Sarada decided to test her friend.

"If you're Chocho, use your jutsu."

Instead of complying, Chocho looked nervously around the group then bolted.

"It's not her!" shouted Denki.

"I'm on it," said Shikadai and stretched his shadow, snaring Chocho instantly.

It seemed while in a human body, kitsune could not escape such jutsu. The fox had nowhere to go but out which it wasn't willing to do just yet.

"Seems it's Chocho's body, otherwise it wouldn't have worked," said Shikadai. "At least we know it's possession and not transformation."

"But when did it happen? We were together the whole time and she passed every question and could use her jutsu as well."

"It must have happened while we were waiting for Boruto to get back from talking to his sister," said Iwabe. "It could have sneaked up behind her or something."

Boruto stood in front of Chocho, analyzing her pained expression. The jutsu didn't seem to be hurting her so it must have been an effect of the kitsune feeling cornered. No matter what it did, it was trapped. If it jumped out, they would chase it down. If it jumped into another body, the same thing would happen again and it would be exposed for a moment.

"If you answer our questions truthfully, we'll let you go," Boruto told her.

"Boruto!"

"We can't do that."

"How do we know it'll tell us the truth?"

"That's right, we can't trust it."

Boruto ignored his friend to watch the girl's expression change subtlety. The kitsune seemed surprised by Boruto's offer, never figuring a human to be merciful. Then it gave a small smile and asked Boruto what he wanted to know.

"How many of you are there in the village?"

She looked sideways then locked eyes with Boruto again, saying, "If I give you a number, will you take me at my word?"

"Maybe. Depends on your answer," he told her.

"Boruto, don't be naive," warned Sarada. "Sometimes you can be too trusting."

"She's right. We have no proof it'll tell us the truth."

"We have no proof it'll lie either." Boruto just wanted to know what the kitsune would say. He would choose whether or not to believe it.

"If you don't want any harm to come to the kitsune we've already captured, you'll tell us the truth," said Iwabe. "If we think you're lying…"

"Harm the kitsune and you'll never see your parents as humans again," retorted the fox in Chocho's body.

"We could always beat the answers out of you. Chocho can take a hit, no problem."

"Iwabe!"

"I'm just trying to scare it a little," he hissed.

Boruto knew the kitsune wouldn't give them a straight answer and tricking the kitsune into giving them information was going to be difficult considering how cunning they could be. Boruto hoped the kitsune would signal to a comrade nearby or slip up and hint at a number or where they should look next. No such luck, however. Even bargaining wasn't working.

Boruto debated for a moment if he should bring his father into the mix. Naruto and the kitsune leader seemed to have a history. They were friends. The kitsune also responded to their leader's commands. The young kitsune immediately stopped once Ryosuke arrived to retrieve them.

If Boruto mentioned how their leader would react to seeing them attack the village of a friend, would they listen? These kitsune might not have cared. What if these kitsune would fear punishment and burrow deeper into the village to hide from their leader's judgement? It might make their job even harder.

What was most important at this moment was getting the kitsune out of Chocho without hurting either of them. Boruto tried once more to reason with the kitsune.

"You're surrounded. Even if you jumped out of Chocho's body and into another, you're still outnumbered. We'll catch you. You won't be able to get far by running either. And we have already captured a bunch of your friends. If you want to know where they are and escape unharmed, you'd better get out of Chocho's body."

"And I'm starting to think having a fox for a dad might not be so bad," said Inojin. "Might make things more interesting. So if one of us loses our temper and hurts you guys, well…"

Sarada hoped Inojin was bluffing but it was hard to tell.

It made the kitsune consider the position it was in and seemed more inclined to surrender peacefully.

Unwilling to take any chances, as soon as the kitsune began to emerge, Denki and Mitsuki bound the kitsune's paws with rope and wrapped it so it couldn't move, making sure the bonds weren't too tight. They carried it to where they had left the other kitsune and tossed it into the cage.

"It's got two tails just like the one that attacked our dads, but this one's a little different," said Shikadai, noticing the markings on the kitsune's fur. The patches of white were off and it had a different voice. "It's not the one responsible."

Denki peered inside to count the tails of each fox but considering how closely packed they were, it was difficult. The kitsune were already starting to bite through the ropes of their comrade's bindings with their teeth.

"This is impossible," sighed Inojin. "We won't know if they're lying or not and we have no way of knowing how many more of them there are in the village. What are we supposed to do, search every house?"

"If we work together, we can," said Metal.

Inojin groaned.

"I don't think that was the point he was trying to make," said Shikadai.

"It seems they don't like spicy food after all," commented Mitsuki. "I'm glad I investigated."

"But we can't line up every single villager in the Leaf and have them sample spicy food in order to find a kitsune. Some people just don't like spice and it has nothing to do with being a fox. Plus, a kitsune could just body jump like before."

"We're not going to get the truth out of them by asking," said Iwabe. "The only way we could interrogate them would be to use a jutsu to fish around for the truth but they're immune."

"Like I said, even if I could use my mom's jutsu, it would be pointless," said Inojin.

"Let's face it, they have the upper hand," Iwabe continued. "We can't bargain with them because we have nothing they want and they've put us in a position where we have something to lose. There's something we want. What leverage do we have against them? They know if we try to kill them, we'd end up losing. It's just an idle threat."

"We've caught four but we still don't know how many more there are, plus we still haven't come across your parents," said Sarada.

"I thought if I asked them, they might give us a clue even if they refused to answer," said Boruto.

"That's what you were trying to do? Trick them into telling?"

"That was the idea, but…"

"I fear Sarada may be correct," whimpered Metal. "The longer we take, the deeper they will get in the village. Replacing the people we care most about. This is unforgivable! And frightening! How can we lure them out?"

"How do we find their numbers is a better question," said the real Chocho.

Denki sat on the ground listening to everyone talk around him, bouncing one idea and comment after the next above his head. Boruto's sharp observation saved them from revealing too much to an enemy which would probably be used against them later.

He had to admit that these kitsune were very crafty. Smart, too. Using possession was better than transformation because then there would be two Chochos and someone would take notice. It didn't matter how many of them there were in the group. A doppelganger alone sparked suspicion.

"Wait!" Denki jumped up. "I have an idea! I know how we can figure out how many there are!"

"How?"

Denki didn't answer. He just pointed to a member of the group excitedly. "Iwabe, come with me. I need your help. Everyone, we'll meet up outside the park soon. Let's hurry!"

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17:**

Denki took Iwabe with him to the main gate of the village as quickly as possible. As they neared, Denki explained his reasoning to Iwabe who pressed him again for an explanation.

"Unless the kitsune are in someone's body, they'd either have to be transformed into someone or be foxes."

"And?"

"And the walls of the village are huge. A kitsune couldn't possibly climb them. They can't use wall climbing techniques we can as shinobi. They rely on their paws. Which means they would have to enter through the main gate, in a ninja body or not. And the main gate is always monitored."

"I see. So you're thinking the guards at the gate would have seen the kitsune entering the village and that is how we figure out their number."

"Exactly."

"But what if they were transformed or possessing someone?"

Denki shook his head. "I don't think they would be possessing anyone unless they were coming back from a mission and unless the guards were expecting someone, the kitsune would have no one to use. And the kitsune are only capable of transforming into people they've seen. This means the guards might have seen the same person come in twice."

"Which will also let us know their numbers." Denki smirked. "But what if the guards changed for the next shift? It would be the perfect time for the kitsune to sneak in as someone else who's already entered."

"That's why the guards have a check-in sheet for security. This is how the Hokage and everybody keeps track or those who have come back to the village so they can't avoid giving their report and be available for the next assignment. We check the list and see if anyone shows up more than once."

"Awesome. Good thinking, Denki."

Reaching the main gate, Denki immediately asked the two guards for the sign-in sheet for guests and shinobi. Initially, they refused, then Iwabe said he was acting on direct orders from the Hokage who wanted to verify a person's whereabouts.

While they gathered the forms from that morning, Denki asked if any of them had seen a group or even one fox enter the village.

"No, but then again, I just started my shift an hour ago," said one.

"I've been here most of the morning," said the other as he handed the clipboard to Denki. "Here's everything from this morning. We've kept track of everything and I don't recall seeing any foxes."

Denki browsed the sheet given to him and found something suspicious. "I knew it. Look." He handed it to Iwabe. "This shinobi shows up twice on this list. Both times entering the village but no record of him leaving between the first and second."

One of the guards pulled the clipboard closer to see for himself. "You're right. How did I miss that? Did the previous guy make a mistake?"

"This one, too." Denki pointed. "He came in this morning and again this afternoon. Without ever leaving through the gate."

"Hey, yeah, I saw that, too," said the second guard. "I marked him down when he got in early this morning. I remember seeing him not too long ago coming in but I didn't see him leave. I assumed it happened when I got coffee and left my partner here."

"And this guy?" asked Iwabe. "He's here twice, too."

"The times are back to back," said Denki. "Four minutes apart, according to this."

"Yeah, I saw him come in then a minute later and I didn't remember seeing him leave. He said he forgot something he dropped on the way in and went out to get it. Marked him down anyway, huh?"

Denki and Iwabe nodded to each other. Anyone who showed up on the chart more than once with no record of leaving or anyone having left and not due back for some time were suspect and had to be assumed as kitsune impostors. That was how they got into the village without being noticed.

Denki counted nine recurring names in total.

"This is it. This is how we can know their numbers." Denki handed the chart back to the guard. "Thanks."

The two boys left the guards staring at the chart scratching their heads to hurry to the park entrance. Their friends were all waiting and after checking to make sure they were really who they appeared to be, Denki gleefully explained their discovery and how they could win while Iwabe smiled proudly as if it were his discovery.

"The gate. Ninja have to check in and out of the village so they aren't called out on assignment while already on a mission and to make sure nobody skips out on their report."

"Yeah," said Sarada. "It's a security issue. When we began our first missions, we had to check in and out as well. The guards take our names down when they see us and guests give their full information. That's why we're encouraged to talk to the guards to make sure they see us to get our names down."

"Exactly. It's no different for kitsune either."

"Huh?"

Denki explained. "I went to the gate and asked for the sheet they use to keep track of everybody coming and going. Several names repeated. None of them were reported to return for a while or were seen leaving. Two left for missions this morning but came back a couple hours later. That's not even enough time to reach their destination."

"Then those guys have to be kitsune," declared Metal. "They entered the village in disguise."

"It would have been easy to do if they stayed in the trees near the gate watching the road. All they'd have to do is see the face of the human passing by and take on their likeness," said Shikadai.

"Effective but unnerving," added Inojin.

Mitsuki smiled, amused. "I'm surprised the guards did not notice. The very people in charge of our safety. They're not very attentive, are they?"

No one else saw amusement in his observation, finding it unnerving as Inojin commented. If this was Mitsuki's attempt at a joke, it was ill-timed to say the least.

"We counted up all the repeating names," Denki went on. "We counted nine in total."

"We already caught four so that means there are five left," said Iwabe. "We can do this."

"Knowing their numbers is only half the battle," said Shikadai. "How do we flush them out? We still have to round them up."

"The village is huge and we already checked the park this morning and staked out the shopping district. Well, one of them. What if the kitsune decided to enter someone's home?"

"He's right," said Sarada. "We already caught one in the neighborhood. The one that got Chocho. If they're away from the populated shopping area and spread out where people live, it's going to be even harder to catch them."

"What are we supposed to do, knock on people's doors and ask if anyone in their family is acting strange? What if the kitsune answers the door?"

"We'll find a way."

"They are only five left. It should be easy to round them up."

"Metal has a point. It's better than not knowing and worrying there might be a hundred in the village. Compared to where we were before, five is nothing. At least we know."

Boruto was feeling pretty optimistic. Knowing their remaining numbers was a big help. While Mitsuki argued they had a better chance of finding one if the numbers had been high, Boruto was thankful they only had to find a handful of kitsune. This shouldn't take long at all.

The question still remained how they would find them.

He paced the ground, thinking. There had to be a way. Maybe if all his friends used Shadow Clones with him, they could spread out over the village to cover more ground and have a better chance. No, that wouldn't work. Sarada would refuse, anyway.

Any kitsune remaining were clearly crafty and more experienced than the ones they've already caught. They would be harder to find. Even the ones they managed to catch knew how to act human with few mistakes. These kitsune weren't like the children they faced the other day, running around like maniacs and making themselves obvious.

Boruto looked at the people passing by, wondering if any of them were the remaining kitsune. The man reading the paper, the woman walking her dog, the children playing tag.

"What if we make the kitsune we've already captured point out their friends to us?"

"Yeah, like they'd rat out their friends."

"If the five kitsune think their friends are in trouble, maybe they'd come to help."

"Let's keep thinking."

The dog on the leash slowed its pace, staring at the man reading the paper. It sniffed his leg. Sniffed again.

The man held the paper closer to his face, trying to ignore it.

The dog tugged on its leash to sniff the man again. Then the dog started barking and the man jolted.

Boruto watched the woman shush the dog, pulling it away with her apologies. The dog continued barking, growling when the man looked down at it. The man moved away but the dog kept calling attention to him, barking and barking.

"What's gotten into you? I'm so sorry, sir."

"It's fine."

"Come along, you. Stop that."

The dog barked, rearing up on its hind legs, then came back down and started to follow its owner down the street. It looked back, barking again but followed obediently.

The man watched it go then returned to his reading.

Dogs acted like that from time to time so it wasn't like Boruto had never seen that response before. They barked like that when they saw another dog, when they wanted to play, then they wanted something, when they sensed something like someone at the door or a change in weather.

However, Boruto couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to this than typical dog behavior.

It reminded him of something his father said the other day to Shikamaru. What did he say?

Boruto usually tried not to pay much attention to anything his father said, mostly to be defiant and sometimes because he didn't think Naruto had anything worth listening to. Now he was trying to remember the comment he made.

What was it?

Something about wanting a dog. About dogs? Rounding up something.

Dogs can do what? What did they do that he needed?

They were able to something.

Something about kitsune.

He was holding them in his hands. He mentioned something to Shikamaru. Said the kitsune were only children and was going to surrender them to their leader.

But there was something he said before that, he was certain.

Dogs can…

"That's it!"

"What's it?" Mitsuki asked, noticing Boruto's epiphany.

"Dogs can sense kitsune. Which means…"

The man peered over the top of the newspaper, locked eyes with Boruto for a moment then took off running.

"That guy's a kitsune!" Boruto pointed. "That guy right there!"

Metal charged down the street as fast as he could. "I will stop him!"

The man kept running without looking back. Metal caught up to him in no time, aiming a kick at his back. The man went flying from the impact, rolled then came to a stop when he hit the side of a fence. Metal stood off to the side to block the man's escape route if he attempted to make another break for it. This way the man would have nowhere to go but back the way he came towards the other ninja.

In an instant, everyone had gathered around the man, keeping their distance and waited to see what the man would do next.

Sarada and Denki were more concerned about the man's well-being after that kick. Thankfully, Metal held back to some extent.

A red fox emerged from the man's chest and darted this way and that, trying to make an escape. Iwabe lurched forward to trap it, creating an opening between himself and Boruto. The kitsune took it and ran.

Suddenly, a hand snaked around the others and grabbed the kitsune from above, pinning it down. Mitsuki stood smiling as the kitsune wriggled about in his hand.

"Four left to go," he said simply.

* * *

Once the kitsune was safely corralled with the others, Sarada wanted to know how Boruto figured out that kitsune could be found with the aid of a dog.

"I remembered what the old man said the other day to Shikamaru. How dogs can detect a kitsune or whatever."

"And you waited until now to remember something so important?"

Boruto frowned. "Hey, at least I remembered. You were there, too. Why didn't you hear him say that?"

"I probably wasn't close enough to hear him. You were practically next to him. Why'd it take you so long to remember?"

"It's not like I pay any attention to what that moron says. It's just our luck he had something worth saying this time. Ha, we're lucky I remembered at all."

Sarada frowned, angry at Boruto and pitying him at the same time.

Was he so defiant, so proud of his own abilities that he had to dismiss everything his father said just because he was the Hokage? Was he that angry and resentful of his father that he refused to listen to anything he had to say just because of his job?

She always found Boruto's rebellion to be self-destructive, but now it was starting to hurt those around him. She knew Boruto would be so defiant he wouldn't take advice from the Hokage even if it meant saving them a lot of trouble in the long run just because he said it.

Because of this, she now started to wonder if Boruto truly didn't remember until just now because he hadn't been paying close attention to his father's words or if he chose to withhold this information out of spite and only shared it now because he had no other choice.

Knowing Boruto may just risk their lives just to avoid taking advice from his father made Sarada want to smack him. She had a feeling he wouldn't, but knowing how stubborn he could be when it came to his father, it was a valid concern.

It wasn't like he would listen to her anyway, especially if she told him that at least he knew his father and could see him and hear his voice. She wanted to tell him how lucky he was by comparison but anytime she hinted at the suggestion, he would become bitter and loudly complain about how she had no idea what she was talking about.

How she wanted to lecture him right now. How she wanted to ask him if he willingly blocked the Hokage's comments from his mind as an act of defiance. If he had simply ignored it to get back at his father in some immature way and if he realized that, in doing so, he put them all in danger.

Wanting to do things their own way was fine but it shouldn't stop one from taking advice from someone more experienced who is only trying to help.

"What's with the look?" Boruto asked her, noticing the expression on her face as her thoughts bubbled like a boiling pot.

She pushed those thoughts aside and decided that lecturing him would be a waste of time, she elected to focus on what was important at this moment.

"If kitsune can be detected by dogs, then the most obvious solution would be for us to use dogs to help us find the remaining four kitsune in the village."

"We can also cross off any families that are dog owners because a kitsune probably wouldn't be anywhere near there," said Iwabe.

"Correct. But now we need to figure out how we can get a hold of some dogs for this. I don't think any of us own one."

"No."

"Uh-uh."

"I might know somebody who can help us out," said Inojin. "A friend of my mom's owns a bunch of dogs. He's a dog-user, too, so he could probably give us some advice."

"Great. How do we find him?"

"Um…" Inojin frowned. "I'm not really sure. He stopped by the shop once and told me that they were friends. He was on a different team, though."

"Do you know which team?"

"I'm trying to think. Um… Oh, yeah. Shino-sensei's. Mom mentioned it once, I think. Not sure how well they got along but being on the same team must mean they know how to find each other, right?"

"Maybe."

"It's better than nothing. We can go to the school and asked Shino-sensei if he knows where to find this guy."

"Why don't we just ask somebody if we can borrow their dog?" asked Chocho.

"That might be a little weird to ask a stranger if we can take their dog on a mission for a few hours."

"How is that weird?"

Boruto was already heading towards the academy in hopes of finding Shino and asking him if he knew how to get in contact with the dog-user.

Though classes were over by this time, Shino and several other teachers liked to stay after hours to catch up on paperwork and chat. Sometimes Boruto would see his sensei walking up and down the halls from the street or watch him observe the insects that came out at twilight on the grounds. He looked very thoughtful, doing this. It was a side of his school sensei Boruto hadn't seen very often.

He never actually put any thought into what his sensei did before becoming an educator or what he liked to do in his spare time. It was as if all the teachers in the school were completely separate from everyday life. That they only existed in that building and had no lives of their own. When Boruto couldn't wait to get out of class, he was always focused on what he wanted to do with that time, never what his teacher was up to or what he wanted.

Maybe this was why Boruto believed they would have the best chance of finding Shino at the school, under the impression he had nowhere else to be. Whether Shino's life revolved around the school or not was irrelevant.

Just their luck, Shino was at the school. Boruto saw him through the window on the third floor.

With the building occupied, the front door was unlocked, making it incredibly easy to get in.

It was weird returning to his school after graduating. Nostalgic and eerie at the same time, but it might have only felt eerie because most of the lights were out. Some flickered on when he walked by but others remained off as he made his way up the stairs to the second floor. Then the third.

There was a light shining from one of the rooms, creating a yellow rectangle on the polished floor. It was quiet. Shino might have been the only one in the room. Boruto hurried over to the open door and stuck his head in.

Shino was bending over a desk with several papers on it, his back to the door.

"Shino-sensei?"

He turned. "What are you doing here? This is unexpected."

"Sorry, I just wanted to ask you something real quick. It's important."

Shino motioned to a chair for Boruto to sit but he declined. Sensing his urgency, Shino remained standing and asked what was on his mind.

"Isn't it true that one of your old teammates was a dog-user?"

Shino paused. "Oh, him. Oh. Yes, that's true. Why?"

"I was wondering if you could get me in contact with him. It's important."

Shino folded his arms. "Well, that might be difficult. My friend tends to move around a lot. He could be on a mission, for all I know."

"Either way, can you tell me where I can find him? His home, is hangouts. Anything will do."

Shino sighed. "Well, your best bet might be at the dog café on the east side of the village. People take their pets there all the time. Have a dog menu and everything. If he's not there, try four blocks down from the flower shop. Nice yard, trees. Can't miss it. He'll probably notice you before you do him."

"Thanks, Shino-sensei. Thanks a lot." Boruto turned and hurried back into the hall before Shino could say anything else.

Once on the stairs, he noticed that his friends hadn't followed him. Either they were waiting in the courtyard or where he had left them. Though in a hurry, he had a feeling they knew where he was going without him having to tell them.

He looked out the nearest window to the yard. Empty. They must have been waiting for him back on the street.

"Boruto."

He turned around. Shino was standing behind him with a folder in his hand. He had just been going over papers in the office, so he must have been filing them or taking them home with him to grade.

"What are you doing?"

"I was just looking to see if any of my friends had followed me."

"Followed you here?" he asked. "Why?"

"Because I was going to ask you about the dog-user you had as a teammate and where I could find him. They were taking a while so I came here to ask you myself. I thought they were right behind me, but…"

"Why do you want to find Kiba so bad?"

"For a mission. It's important but I can't tell you anything."

"I have no idea where he could be but if usual hangouts are devoid of him, he might be on a date with his girlfriend. Where they would go, I haven't the faintest idea. I don't know much about her other than she likes cute things. So maybe the dog café or the park. That way his partner will be with him. Or you could try five blocks that way. Look for a wooden fence."

"Well, the dog café was…"

Boruto paused. Shino already mentioned the café to him but these new directions were different. Four block, five blocks. He hadn't mentioned any girlfriend. It could have just slipped his mind until now.

Boruto moved away from the window, eyeing Shino's face. It was impossible to see his eyes with that visor on.

"What did you say your teammate's name was again?"

"Kiba," he answered.

He hadn't mentioned his name before. Just called him a friend.

Boruto looked back towards the stairs leading to the third floor. Shino had just walked down them himself. He had the papers from the office.

However…

Boruto swallowed hard.

* * *

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	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18:**

Something wasn't right. He knew that. He could feel it.

Despite the close proximity to the office and the papers in his hand, Boruto couldn't be certain this was the same Shino he had spoken to a minute ago.

This Shino seemed surprised to see him in the hall. After speaking with him in the office, he shouldn't have been too surprised. He could have been surprised to see him dawdling after telling him he was in a hurry, but Boruto was suspicious.

The Shino in the office never gave the name of his friend but acted like he knew exactly what Boruto was talking about. This one gave the name.

Could it be possible that Shino had been possessed until a moment ago? If so, did that mean the kitsune was still in the office waiting for its chance to escape?

"I'll be right back."

Boruto rushed back up the stairs to the third floor with Shino calling to his back, demanding an explanation. Boruto never paid any attention to him while he was a student and little had changed since then. Ignoring him completely, Boruto returned to the office and looked around.

Empty.

Could he have been wrong?

To be sure, he looked under desks and couches and behind curtains. No one else was in here.

It made sense that Shino was Shino even more now. The papers were taken from this room, so it must have been the same Shino. A fox had no use for paperwork. Boruto doubted an animal could read anyway. Therefore, it must have been the real Shino leaning over the papers before. Even possessed, a fox probably wouldn't do that.

Boruto was left scratching his head, positive that something was off but was unable to find proof of any foul play. He knew something was wrong. He could feel it. What was he missing?

"Boruto, you can't be in here," Shino said from the doorway. "You don't have permission and you're not a student anymore."

He turned.

"What's this about?" Shino asked. "What are you doing?"

Boruto didn't respond, still trying to figure out the puzzle.

"Shino-sensei, were you in here a little while ago?"

"Yes. I was doing some work before going home."

"Did you speak with me?"

"Yes," he said. "In the hallway."

"I meant in here."

"No. I found you in the hallway."

Then it wasn't Shino.

Boruto went back into the hall to do some additional searching. Shino didn't bother stopping him this time, knowing he wouldn't listen.

He went up and down the third-floor hallways, popping in and out of unlocked classrooms and returned to the stairs. Shino was walking back up the stairs with the same file under his arm.

"You're still here, Boruto?" he asked, sounding annoyed. "What are you up to?"

"Sorry, Shino-sensei. I'm just a little confused."

Shino sighed. "What's the problem, Boruto? Tell me."

"It's just… I don't know. When did you see me last? Let's start there."

"See you last?" Shino seemed surprised by the question. "In my office. Just a few minutes ago."

Boruto sighed. "Ok."

"Are you going to tell me what this is about?"

"It's nothing. Mind if I return to your office real quick for something?" Boruto had to be sure he didn't miss anything before leaving. He needed some peace of mind.

"Alright," he sighed. "Make it quick. I've got more work to do before going home."

Boruto led the way back to the office and stepped inside.

Shino looked up from the desk.

Boruto stopped in his tracks.

Shino tried to step around him to get inside. "Boruto, what..?"

Silence.

Boruto's eyes darted from his shoulder to the desk and back.

Two Shinos.

It wasn't possession, it was transformation. He knew something strange was going on.

"Well, this is awkward," said the one at the desk.

The one standing at Boruto's side stared at the duplicate, fumbling for words. "What is this?"

Ninja or not, it must have been strange to see an exact copy staring back and speaking in the same voice. Shino's mind was undoubtedly racing to figure out why someone would be assuming his form and who the culprit was.

"Shino-sensei..?"

"Boruto, what's going on here?" they asked in unison.

"Crap." Boruto took a few steps away from the one he came in with, wondering if he was the impostor. He stopped before getting too close to the one who was already in the room, wondering if he was the impostor.

This was going to be difficult to solve. They both knew his name. They both looked exactly alike and sounded the same.

How was he ever going to tell them apart?

What they said prior to all this seemed like a good start but then Boruto had a troubling thought: What if they switched places?

He couldn't be sure if the Shino he spoke to first hadn't went out into the hall at some point and now that Shino was standing with him. It was impossible to know which Shino was the one he found in the office first. Even asking them was no good. He had already tried and both admitted to speaking to him in the hall at some point and in the office.

Asking them what they spoke about would be of little help because Boruto was certain he asked them both the same questions. The impostor and the real Shino would have the same information.

He looked from one to the other, knowing one of them was fake and unable to tell them apart.

Questions. He had to ask them questions.

"Alright," Boruto said loudly, ready to get to the bottom of this. "What is the name of your dog-user friend?"

"Kiba," they both said at once.

Boruto's mouth fell open. They both had the same answer.

"Ok, um… What's my dad's name?"

"Naruto."

"What's my mom's name?"

"Hinata."

"Um…" Boruto was starting to panic. They didn't miss a beat. "What level ninja am I?"

"Genin."

"Seriously?" Boruto had to think of something harder. Something only his teacher would know.

Surely a kitsune wouldn't know what happened during classes, months before their arrival.

He asked both who had top marks in class and they both gave the same answer. He asked about his own grades and they gave the same answer. They even had the same impression of him.

"What did you tell my mom during the meeting before the graduation exams?"

"That despite your excellent performance and test scores, you lack listening skills and don't always cooperate which led to your low marks in that department," they said at the same time.

"I told you before, Boruto…" began one.

"Application is good and so is your knowledge…" said the other.

"But unless you listen to people…"

"Rather than thinking you have all the answers…"

"Because of your grades…"

"You can only go so far as a shinobi and your participation grades reflect that."

Boruto felt dizzy, witnessing the two finish each other's sentences so flawlessly.

They both had the same complaints about how Boruto seemed to believe that his grades reflected his abilities and therefore didn't have to pay attention or participate depending. He refused to take advice at times because he thought he didn't need to, the logic being that if he had good grades and abilities that he could do anything with minimal struggle.

He remembered getting the same lecture from his family as well as Sarada. How his mother, Sarada and even Naruto tried to convey to him that excelling in school didn't mean he was unbeatable in battles. Shino and Sarada both accused him of being too cocky.

How would a kitsune know that? He had never spent any time with them or told them details of his life. He doubted they could read him at a glance. Then again, this kitsune was doing an excellent impression of Shino and he doubted they had officially met.

Unless…

Observation.

Boruto looked at the desk piled high with papers and notebooks. If a kitsune could read, all this information could be found in the student records. Even though he was no longer attending the ninja academy, the school would still have his file as he hadn't graduated too long ago.

Though Boruto had no idea how the filing system worked at the school, he was positive that if his file was still in this office that must have been what the kitsune had been reading when Boruto first arrived. That one was the fox.

It was astounding that the kitsune could acclimate so quickly through mere observation and a little study.

He hated to admit it but maybe Sarada had a point about the kitsune being able to blend in seamlessly if given enough time.

Who knew how long this kitsune had been hanging around the school? It's impression of Shino was flawless. Between the time Boruto had come to the office and now, the kitsune had learned his name, the name of Shino's friend and so much more. Not a moment was wasted and they were clearly fast learners.

How could he tell them apart?

If the kitsune knew what Shino knew then the only thing that stood a remote chance of being different was…

"Show me your jutsu," Boruto told them. "Use it now."

Both questioned why they should waste their chakra but at his insisting, they complied.

At least, one of them did.

The Shino standing beside him raised his hand and a small swarm of insects began to spread from his sleeve, gathering in the air before retreating.

The Shino at the desk stood motionless, watching.

Both stared at him expectantly.

He smiled and two pointed ears popped up on top of his head.

"You!" Boruto took a fighting stance.

"My, my, you are clever." The fur began to spread down his face and body and a tail swished back and forth behind his back. Then a second. The furry Shino crouched on all fours, preparing to leap.

With a growl, he sprang into the air, launching himself at Boruto.

Interfering, Shino shoved Boruto aside to protect his former student and took the hit himself.

"Shino-sensei!"

Boruto saw them tumble into the hall. The real Shino landed on his back and the one with two tails galloped down the hall toward the stairs. Without checking to see if Shino was alright, Boruto ran after the kitsune, clearing the steps in one leap, landing hard and sprinting down the next flight as fast as he could.

Laying on his back, Shino gave a loud sigh. "This again?"

He was going to have to have a word with Naruto when this was over.

* * *

"Is that as fast as you can go?" the kitsune taunted him, still sporting most of Shino's form.

It was weird seeing a furry version of his sensei run around on all fours and laughing. So much so that Boruto had to keep himself from laughing as he chased him, this whole thing feeling more like a playground game than a serious chase.

"Come on, come on!" the kitsune hollered. "This way, this way!"

Its borrowed form was unbalanced and the kitsune slipped a couple times while taking sharp turns in the soil, giving Boruto a chance to corner it. He conjured up three clones and had them flank the tailed Shino and coral him into a tighter space for capture.

"Sorry!" The kitsune jumped, pounced off a clone's head and ran a different direction. "Gotta do better than that!"

Boruto and his remaining clones changed direction and gave chase again. They followed the kitsune around a tree, which it circled several times before running away. It tried to climb a different tree but a clone cut him off and the kitsune ran elsewhere.

This was actually kind of fun. It really did feel like a game of tag. The kitsune wasn't taking him seriously at all, laughing the entire time. Instead of getting insulted, Boruto tried his best to show the fox what he could do. Maybe it was all the laughing and seeing how silly his sensei looked, but Boruto took this whole spectacle as a chance to show off, unable to see the threat in the moment.

The laughter was contagious. Boruto started laughing as well, coming very close to catching the kitsune several times. They were just playing a game in the schoolyard.

At last, Boruto showed off his clever side, cutting off the kitsune as it made its way around another tree. To avoid capture, it jumped at the last moment over Boruto's head. In the air, it felt something slam into it from behind. A clone had launched Boruto into the air and tackled the kitsune to the ground.

Surrounded by clones and with Boruto sitting on its chest, the foxy Shino laughed and panted. "You caught me!"

"Damn right I did!" Boruto was panting and grinning widely. The game was won.

The kitsune turned back into a fox. Exhausted from the ordeal, it put up little fight when Boruto tied a rope from his bag around the fox's body as a harness and held on to one end of the rope while a clone carried the fox.

Forgetting all about the seriousness of the mission, Boruto felt exhilarated and accomplished, as if he had just won a game of tag against the best player at the school. He was very pleased with himself and couldn't stop smiling.

His smile only faded when he found his friends and the first thing they asked after seeing the captured fox was if he found the location of the dog-user.

Unable to tell which Shino had given him the right information, Boruto nearly dropped the rope.

"Crap."

"You didn't ask?"

"I did, but…"

If the first Shino had been a kitsune, then it stood to reason that the second one he spoke to was the real one who gave the correct information. They were really options more than an actual location.

"It's weird, though," said Boruto after securing the kitsune with the others. "If kitsune can be detected by a dog, then why would a kitsune give me that kind of information? They knew where the dog café was and everything."

"Maybe they want to know that stuff so they can avoid going their themselves," suggested Denki.

"It's also a good way for them to blend in more if they give the right directions to a place," said Iwabe. "Then it's harder for us to tell if they're fakes or not. These kitsune are smart."

"But knowing they're leading me to where a dog might be?" said Boruto with a shake of his head. "It's like calling attention to their weakness. Why would they do that?"

"Like they said, to avoid suspicion," said Sarada. "You'll know something's up if they actively avoid going to places where there're dogs. Best way to avoid that is to act like it doesn't bother you."

"I guess you're right."

Chocho looked at the crowded animal carrier. "Looks like there's three left to find, right?"

"I think we might need a bigger cage," said Metal.

"Let's find the dogs first," said Shikadai. "Boruto, you said that Shino-sensei gave you good information on where to find a dog-user. Let's check out those places and go from there."

The group split up to cover more ground, agreeing to meet up outside a popular store in the shopping area.

Most were unsuccessful but Sarada and Chocho were able to find the person in question.

Kiba was walking some dogs when he heard two girls call out to him. Chocho recalled seeing Kiba before but never made the connection that he was a dog-user.

Akamaru wasn't up for running around the village on a kitsune hunt but Kiba was willing to let the girls borrow the other two dogs because they could use the exercise and the training. He told them where to meet when they were finished so he could take the dogs home for dinner and a good rest.

Sarada and Chocho each took a dog and hurried to find the group and show them the good news. Chocho complained that the dog in her arms was eyeing her snacks and how nervous it was making her. She also wondered why Kiba didn't have leashes for the dogs and let them walk around freely.

They didn't know this, but Kiba hated leashes and didn't see his dogs as pets but as partners, students and members of the family. Even Akamaru wasn't considered a pet but a friend and partner. He threw a fit anytime someone suggested putting his companion on a leash, taking great offense.

Meeting up with the group, they devised a plan to get the most out of the two dogs they had in a village this size. Iwabe and Shikadai both knew they needed more dogs to be better effective but two would have to suffice.

"So we just walk around the village and hope the dogs notice something?" Metal asked.

"That's the idea. On the plus side, we can rule out places and households with dogs."

"We have to start somewhere. Let's just start walking and see what we can find."

"Three to go. Let's do this."

This was the only circumstance where Boruto felt comfortable splitting the group. The dogs would undoubtedly help identify a kitsune if one entered the group. One group went into the park to see if a kitsune would be hiding in an area similar to its natural environment. The other walked up and down different streets in the shopping area then would branch out to different neighborhoods.

Shikadai frowned, walking with Chocho and Inojin while Sarada held the leash, walking the dog passed numerous houses as they left the shopping area.

"What's up?" Inojin asked, noticing Shikadai's expression.

"Doesn't this seem odd to you?"

"Which part?"

"I've been thinking," he said, pulling his thoughts together. "Why would these foxes want to invade the Leaf Village? They're wild animals. It's not like we have something to offer them. I don't think they'd be interested in taking over the village, so what's the point?"

"Maybe they just want to mess around?" Inojin reasoned halfheartedly. His knowledge of kitsune was limited and what he did know was that kitsune loved to play pranks on people. This could have all been a game to them.

"I don't think so," said Shikadai. "If that were the case, they would have been jumping out a lot more, like when little kids play hide-and-seek. It's all about the surprise. This is nothing like the other day. These ones seem to be trying to blend in and hide."

"Yeah," said Chocho, as if it were obvious. "So we don't find them. That's why people hide."

He shook his head. "No. This seems more like an attempt at a takeover. They're trying to live as humans so no one will notice. They're trying to take people's identity and live as that person. But why?"

"Maybe something happened to their habitat and they need a new place to go?"

"That seems likely, but why our village? Why our people? It's strange to me."

Sarada listened without a word, pretending she couldn't hear them. Truthfully, she had been wondering the same thing.

"Logically speaking, if the kitsune wanted to take over the village, they would assume the form or possess a high-ranking ninja and go to the records, open files and go from there. Apparently, they know how to read. But none of them seem to be doing that and I don't see how it would help them. The records high-ranking ninja have access to are mainly shinobi files, things about one's skills and abilities, which are only useful when preparing for battle or something. Learning your enemy's weaknesses and things like that. And I don't see them needing or wanting something like that."

"True, that's something an enemy ninja would want. Not a fox. Not to mention how security's really tight there."

"Although, since Dad would have access to those records, given his position, it would make sense why he was turned into a fox. With him out of the way, a fox could assume his form and enter the building with little fuss. But I haven't seen anyone do that yet and the fox would still require information in order to do that. Dad's name, the location of the files. How would a fox know what to look for?"

"I thought Lord Sixth said that he was friends with some of them. Could he have told them?"

"I doubt it." Shikadai sighed heavily. "So why are they doing this? They're not gathering useful information that could hurt the village and they don't seem to be pranking people with surprises. So why? Why? What's the point?"

"I don't think we can figure this out because we're not the same," said Chocho. "We can't expect humans to think like animals and the reverse. We just can't understand."

She did have a point. Shikadai was trying to look at the situation from a human perspective and they were dealing with animals. However, when he tried to consider what an animal would want, the situation made even less sense.

This was certainly a puzzle.

* * *

Meanwhile, Boruto's group kept wandering the park. Having been through it completely, they debated where to go next.

"Should we double back?" asked Denki. "A kitsune might have entered when we exited."

"In that sense, shouldn't we wait for them to come to us because we keep missing each other?" asked Iwabe.

Boruto turned his body in a circle, looking in all directions.

"What's the problem?"

"Mitsuki. He's gone."

At some point, the pale golden-eyed ninja had wandered off.

That must have been it. If he had been attacked, they would have heard something. Being a ninja, he could have chosen to sneak away without them noticing.

Unwilling to leave him behind, Boruto urged his friends to accompany him back into the park to look for him.

* * *

Mitsuki had deliberately slipped away from the group without a word to conduct his own research. It was related only in part to their mission, but the rest was personal.

In order to satisfy his own curiosity, he walked off the trail, moving deeper into the park. Surrounded by a cluster of trees, he stopped and waited.

"You might as well come out," he said without lifting his head, staring straight ahead. "I know you're there."

Leaves rustled above his head.

"I can wait," he said softly.

The rustling stopped and a voice answered him.

"Aren't you afraid I'll use my magic on you?" said the voice.

"I'm not worried," said Mitsuki. "If you were going to do that, you would have done so by now rather than watch me."

"What a bold human you are. Did it cross your mind that I could have been taking my time to approach you just right then pounce?"

"Not really." Mitsuki smiled. "You wanted me to find you. It seems that you are able to conceal yourselves when you want. You are the animal equivalent to ninja, it would seem. Very interesting."

The kitsune changed positions in the tree multiple times. Mitsuki made no effort to capture it. Only observe.

"What do you want?" the kitsune asked above his head.

"I want to know why you are invading the Leaf. Something about this attack struck me as odd and I think I will receive more answers from you than I would conferring with my friends. Some don't seem aware of the abnormality and others have yet to say anything. If I were to bring it up, something tells me it would just lead to a debate as no one knows for certain. Only the source would know that."

He phrased his words carefully to the kitsune. At no point did he say he would believe the answers he was given, only that he would receive more of them. Whatever truth they carried remained uncertain, but he thought he might be able to uncloak the lies the more the kitsune spoke. Like Boruto, he wanted to know what the kitsune would say.

"Any invading ninja would have gone straight for the important artifacts or information concerning the Leaf and its people. You haven't made any moves suggesting that's what you're after. Besides, as animals, what good would it do you? You are not trying to take over, merely hide. But why? Only to not be found? It's strange to me. But then again, you are animals. I cannot begin to understand how you think. Most animals are only concerned about food and territory. Things to aid survival. I would imagine a kitsune would be no different. Although, you are similar in many ways to human beings."

What an animal would deem important shared similarities to human values. Territory, food, shelter, protection, offspring and their survival just to name a few. They also liked to play, like most human children and became excited when introduced to an adventure and a change in routine. They created toys from the things around them, sticks and small rocks they could bat around or toss. They could even speak and understand the human language.

They could hide so well when they wanted to.

Mitsuki was suspicious of their motives but at the moment he had a personal question for the kitsune resting on the branch out of sight.

"How are you able to act so human despite being an animal?"

The kitsune did not answer right away. Instead it moved closer to the base of the tree were there were fewer leaves to rustle. Mitsuki heard it slip between branches and land on the roots.

A moment later, a perfect clone of himself stepped out from behind the tree and stood in front of him with a smile.

"Observation and practice," said the duplicate in his voice. It smiled the same smile, too.

Mitsuki stared at himself, noticing every detail and finding no flaws aside from his own.

The kitsune seemed more human than he was.

Mitsuki then asked, "Do you live among humans?"

"Yes and no," said his reflection. "Our territories are close and we cannot help seeing them from time to time. Children enter our forest on a dare to test their bravery and though we never make contact with them, it is hard not to notice."

"You watch them until they leave."

"Yes. And even then, we are still curious. We study humans from the trees and never venture farther than that. At one time we had to and saw how frightening humans could be. They may harm us, so we keep our distance."

"Just as an animal would." Mitsuki then asked, "If you are so afraid of humans, why are you in the Leaf Village where humans reign supreme? Humans with weapons. Jutsu may not harm you but our weapons certainly can."

The reflection smirked in a way Mitsuki believed he could never form on his own face.

Even while they talked, the kitsune assuming his form did things he would never do normally, yet it did everything so effortlessly. Its gestures, its expressions, even the tone of voice changed depending on the subject and how something needed to be said. Mitsuki only noticed his voice being able to produce one tone.

"We're curious," the kitsune said in answer to Mitsuki's question. "We wish to see if ninja humans are any different from normal humans."

"Normal is relative," said Mitsuki. "For Boruto, having breakfast with his mother and father and sister is normal. Sitting down at a table together then having a mother wish him well and kiss his forehead is normal. Being hugged is normal. Even Sarada's lifestyle is normal to her because that is what she knows. For her, having a mother clean and cook is normal. Doing everything on her own is normal. Hugging her and saying how worried she was is normal."

Mitsuki's eyes drifted downward.

As for him, he did not know any of that. His parent never did the things his teammate's parents did and that was normal. He had no recollection of a warm and bright table covered with food, sharing it with his parent. No birthday cake with candles. No hugs or kisses or looks of concern after coming home late. No bedroom filled with posters and toys. No photographs.

He had no childhood to speak of. And that, for him, was normal.

Seeing how his friends lived was both awkward and enlightening. Mitsuki experienced a home-cooked meal from a mother for the first time when he came over to Boruto's house and ate with the family. Everyone sitting down together. The warmth and friendly faces felt strange to him. A part of him felt he didn't belong there because it was so different, but if that was part of a normal human experience, he wanted to try it for himself.

He felt he was lacking. Knowing how the majority of people lived made him feel out of place. Boruto complained that he didn't like the arrangement because his father often missed dinner with the family, but it was still more than Mitsuki had.

At least he got to see his progression in photographs lined up neatly on walls or on shelves. At least he had memories of his past, good and bad. Mitsuki couldn't say the same for himself.

He wanted it. He wanted to be normal. No, he didn't know if he wanted that yet. What he did know was that he wanted to know what it was to be human. He wanted that. He wanted to know what it felt like, what it was in its earnest form and understand it.

These kitsune. They seemed to understand it better than he did. Even the Mitsuki staring back at him was more human than the real thing.

It didn't anger him. It intrigued him. More than anything, it made him very self-conscious.

"For you," said Mitsuki after a long reflective pause, "living in the forest is normal. Having fur and a tail is normal. Having it split is normal. Compared to other foxes, that's abnormal. To a kitsune it's natural."

"And for you?" asked the fake Mitsuki.

He looked the kitsune in the eye and said honestly, "Though I am human, I feel like you're more human than I am."

The kitsune looked surprised as if the statement were unorthodox. Then its face softened to one of understanding.

"Sometimes," it said, "we are able to do so because we've studied humans so closely. To a point where we understand them better than they do themselves. However, doing what comes naturally is more sincere than someone mimicking in order to blend in."

Mitsuki's reaction was ever so slight to the kitsune's response.

It sounded to him that it was better to be himself, as awkward as it may have been, than to blend in for the sake of acceptance. When he learned what he wanted, he should act however he is meant to than how he's supposed to.

If it wasn't in him to burst out laughing or be the center of attention, then he shouldn't attempt to be. It would be a farce. But if it was in him to observe others quietly in an effort to understand, then that was what he should do. It was just a kitsune's way of saying he should be himself.

"Besides," the kitsune went on, "I find that sometimes those who think and wonder are more likely to understand than those who act without thinking."

"Are you getting philosophical?" Mitsuki asked, inclining his head slightly.

The clone's shoulders shrugged. "I'm not sure if you can understand what I'm trying to say or if you're get the wrong idea. Obviously, I'm not human."

It was strange seeing and hearing those words come from his mouth. So much so, that it actually sent a shiver up his spine. He rarely felt this way.

"I believe you're telling me not to worry and that I should just focus on being myself than conforming for the sake of fitting in," said Mitsuki, smiling. "However, to twist your words a little, one could say that what you're saying is that if you are a villain there is no reason to stop if that is who you are. If you delight in harming others, stay true to yourself and not stop."

The kitsune frowned. Then it let out a huge sigh and threw its hands in the air.

"This is probably why we are no longer sought after for our wisdom. Humans twist things way too much."

"Sought after?"

"Yes. At one time, kitsune were looked to for guidance by humans. If a human was lucky enough to find us, we would bestow our wisdom upon them and be off. Clearly, humans love to twist things in their favor. Use our words as encouragement for wrongdoing. We don't do that anymore. Not our group, at least. Can't speak for others."

"So there are other kitsune out there." Mitsuki just learned something new. He had a feeling their conversation might yield something.

"There are, somewhere. I don't know where they might be or if they are still there."

The Mitsuki clone strode over to the real one and they touched foreheads.

"I was merely telling you not to worry. As you said, normal is relative," said the grinning Mitsuki clone. "But people can change. They can see their wrongdoings is harmful and choose to stop and become virtuous. Same way you may think you are not human then one day discover that you are more human than you know."

The clone pulled away, still smiling.

Mitsuki watched him placidly. Then he smiled.

"I was just asking," he said. "Seems I've inherited my parent's dark humor."

The kitsune smiled back knowingly.

Though Mitsuki was ignorant of the past and the kitsune's history, it knew. The kitsune knew that desires could be curbed and what came naturally could be controlled.

At one time, it was natural for them to pull pranks on the humans, but after a series of events and poor outcomes, they've stopped. They missed it terribly as it was a part of who they were and what they enjoyed. Now, through a series of other circumstances, it was decided that they could use their fox magic if certain conditions were met. Like frightening away dangerous humans or making sure their home in the mountain remained a secret from human eyes.

They could choose to do wrong but didn't. They learned to live peacefully. Things had to change but the arrangement they made with the king and Ryosuke was one they could all accept and live by.

The kitsune wanted to tell Mitsuki more but had a feeling it would only confuse the human child. It could tell that Mitsuki's circumstances were different from theirs so it wouldn't be their place to tell him step for step what to do. Mitsuki had to find his own way.

From what little the kitsune saw, it could tell that Mitsuki would not end up like Reevo. This human had people he cared about. He was just trying to find a way to connect with them.

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19:**

A rustling noise alerted Naruto to new company. It was one of the foxes along with Shikamaru. Naruto smiled at the two of them.

Shikamaru looked exhausted. He was covered in dirt and was panting heavily. It seemed the training was a lot harder than he expected it would be. His four legs wobbled as he tried to stand on a large rock beside Naruto. He sat down, his back arching with each labored breath.

"So… how's it going?" Naruto asked with a gleam in his eye.

"He's doing quite well," admitted Aurora. "For a human, that is."

Naruto turned to hear Shikamaru's answer.

"I never realized how difficult it was," Shikamaru admitted. "How little I actually knew. I had no idea this was what it took to live as a fox. As a kitsune. It's not as easy as I thought it would be. The lessons on finding food and water alone are very different from how a human would do it. It's like starting from square one. Not to mention all the other things I have to learn as well."

Naruto smiled. "But it's still fun, isn't it?"

Shikamaru raised his head. "Actually… it is. Even I have to admit that it is a lot of fun." He grinned. "Being a fox isn't so bad."

Naruto's smile deepened. "I agree."

Shikamaru looked into Naruto's eyes. "I owe you an apology."

Naruto stared back, listening.

"The way I was acting before. The way I was thinking… I didn't think I could be so narrow-minded. I was wrong. I was judging too harshly. I'm sorry."

Naruto nodded. "It's ok. You're trying to look out for people. Trying to protect them. There's nothing wrong with that."

Shikamaru gave a faint chuckle. "It amazes me how understanding you can be to others."

He was kind but tough when he needed to be. His kindness was not a weakness. It was something the village needed in a Hokage. In a friend.

This was how Naruto had become so strong. Gaining trust and friendship in others, gathering allies. It had made him strong and the village as well. And anyone they were allied with.

How many wars had been started by not understanding? By not giving someone else a chance? By spreading hatred?

Naruto understood and so did Shikamaru. The Hokage knew what he was doing. He knew where to place his trust. When to talk and when to fight.

Shikamaru scoffed. "I never thought the Hokage would be advising me…"

Naruto shrugged. "It's not one or the other. We're working together. There are plenty of times when you've talked me out of doing something stupid."

"That may be true. But you have better people skills than I do."

"That's up for debate. I think you're pretty good at it."

Shikamaru said nothing as he reflected on his feelings from the other day when Naruto announced that no one would be punished and how he did not agree, thinking Naruto was being too lenient. Usually Shikamaru was accused of such a thing.

Maybe it was different because of the person involved. If his son did something wrong, depending on what it was and the circumstances, Shikamaru wouldn't punish him too harshly. Only speak to him and call the matter finished. This might have been because he understood his son and knew he wasn't malicious. Or maybe it was, as his wife often told him, that he was too lazy to punish his child because to his mind it wasn't a big deal.

Assisting with the village was another matter entirely. He not only stood at Naruto's side for much of the day going over what they should do, but he was often being screamed at by other villagers and shinobi who needed the Hokage's attention that instant, demanding to know why Shikamaru wasn't 'doing his job' or making sure their requests were put on top of the pile.

Some traditional thinkers often told Naruto that he needed to embrace the old way of the village because in their eyes it worked and became irritated when Naruto refused, finding flaws in old methods and attempted to do better. Naruto wasn't the only one who got an earful. As his adviser, Shikamaru was often followed down the hall or summoned by elder shinobi and barked at, pressured to sway Naruto's decision.

He developed a talent for letting things go in one ear and out the other in order to survive living with his mother all those years, but everyone had their breaking point.

He was usually in agreement with Naruto but lately it became harder to tune out those voices telling him he was doing it wrong and how the whole village would be affected if the Hokage were too easygoing or too harsh.

"Maybe I was just worried about my kid or maybe the higher-ups were getting to me. I don't know. But I wasn't thinking clearly before." Shikamaru lifted his head. "You were right not to punish anyone."

Naruto paused, then said, "Sometimes I wonder if I'm being too lenient. It's not like I had any parents to lecture me or punish me. I waited until school for that. And I did deserve those punishments even though I hated it. But Iruka-sensei would take me out for Ramen afterward and everything was alright. I never held a grudge."

Naruto looked at the ground, thinking about his past and how adults would punish him for no good reason. How he would be screamed at just for walking by or have things thrown at him. Even when he tried to do good, people would punish him for making a mistake. Because of this, Naruto never wanted to punish someone for making a mistake. He saw no point to it.

"I will punish someone if they're intentionally doing something they know is wrong, but I don't see a point in punishing someone for making an honest mistake," he told Shikamaru.

"Yeah, your daughter didn't know and the kitsune children didn't understand. I didn't consider that before and that was wrong of me. I should have trusted you more about this sort of thing."

"You think I don't hear what some people are saying about me when I make a choice on how to handle something? How some of the elders think I'm making the village weak as a result? I've heard them to my face and through the door when they're scolding you for not convincing me."

Shikamaru suspected Naruto was already aware of what was going on and Naruto just confirmed that.

"Well, those guys are ignoring the flaws in their own methods. How their way of doing things weakened the village a long time ago and set things into motion when we were growing up," Naruto continued. "What Sai had to go through, and the things Kakashi-sensei told us about, Sasuke's family and even the things that happened to Pein. It created problems later on. Led people down the path of revenge and war. I know not everyone did, but I saw enough to know their way needed to change."

"I agree," said Shikamaru. "There are two sides to every battle and one push is all that's needed to turn it ugly. To get a lot of innocent people involved and hurt."

He looked over at Aurora. After learning their story, he found it to be even more true.

Now that he had a family, he felt confident having people like Kakashi and Naruto in charge. They wouldn't be quick to enter war just because someone taunted them. Naruto knew that retaliation didn't prove strength but a thin skin and disregard for the lives of his people.

Charging into battle was the last resort.

Shikamaru had kept quiet the other day when Naruto dealt with the kitsune in his own way. Even if he disagreed at the time, he wasn't motivated to do things his own way. He knew it would have started something else.

How would Aurora react if she learned Shikamaru had done something to her pups? They were friends with Naruto. What would his actions start?

Shikamaru was satisfied that it wasn't in him to act with haste. It took a lot to make him emotional but even then he tried to keep a cool head and think. Rarely did he falter but it did happen. Not over some little foxes playing in the village but it was a gentle reminder of what could happen if he made the wrong move.

Naruto looked at his watch. He glanced around then looked at the sky.

He was waiting for something and Shikamaru assumed it wasn't Sai and the other two kitsune.

It was the next generation.

He was curious to see how they were faring as well. This was one situation his son couldn't give up so easily.

"I know why you did this," Shikamaru told Naruto. "You had me transformed so I would learn a lesson. But you also did it so my son would have something to work for. If he gives up, he'll have to deal with a fox for a dad indefinitely. Right?"

Naruto smirked. "That, and I thought you guys could use a break." He raised his head to the sky and said, "Sometimes it's better not to think like humans."

Shikamaru smirked, giving Naruto a look he hadn't given him in over a month.

Satisfied, Naruto smirked back and returned his gaze to the sky.

* * *

"Mitsuki!" Boruto called through the park. "Mitsuki!"

Metal whistled. "Here, Mitsuki!"

"He's not a dog, Metal."

"Mitsuki!" Iwabe called loudly. "Get out here! We're wasting time!"

"Do you think he found the kitsune?" Denki asked. "Maybe it captured him."

"How could a kitsune trap a human?" Iwabe asked. "Other than possession, what can they do?"

"They might still have powers we don't know about."

"And they can turn people into foxes," Boruto reminded them. "Trapping someone in a different form."

"Boruto, look." Denki pointed.

Something orange was coming their way and the dog started barking. The creature paused and took a slow step towards the group then stopped, unwilling to go any further.

"Boruto," said the fox in Mitsuki's voice.

"Mitsuki!" Boruto dropped the leash and ran forward. "What happened to you?"

The fox looked up at him and said, "I found a kitsune in the park but…" He looked down at his body. "Somehow I ended up like this. I didn't even notice until it was too late. I don't know where the kitsune went."

The dog barked and barked.

Boruto ignored it, believing the dog couldn't tell the difference between a kitsune and a transformed human.

"This is why I didn't want anybody getting separated. Mitsuki, why didn't you tell us where you were going?"

The fox looked down. "I'm sorry, Boruto. I don't want you to be upset with me, but… I thought you were on to something when you suggested asking the kitsune questions. I tried to do the same thing, thinking it would be easier if I was alone. With no backup, the kitsune might be more inclined to speak with me. I thought if I could get it talking, it could slip up and tell me something useful, like you tried to do. Guess I messed that up."

Boruto sighed. Mitsuki had been trying to help them out by using Boruto's methods in his own way. It might have been foolish, but Mitsuki often acted on his own if he felt it could benefit Boruto in some way.

"We'll get you fixed up, Mitsuki. Don't worry."

"If you're a fox, are you a regular fox or a kitsune?" Iwabe asked. "If you're a kitsune, you might share some of their abilities. In which case, you might be able to help us find the one that did this to you."

"I'm not sure." The fox looked down at himself. "I'm not sure I would be able to use a kitsune's abilities even if I were one. I don't know what to do. I can't tell if I am or not."

"He might just be a fox, then." Boruto stood up. "As long as we have the dog, we can find it."

"But…" Denki observed the dog growling at the fox at their feet. If Mitsuki had been transformed, the dog might not be very helpful to them anymore. It would keep barking at Mitsuki and might ignore other, real kitsune.

"I think the dog's distracted by Mitsuki," said Iwabe. "We need to get Mitsuki out of here so the dog can do its job."

"I'm not leaving Mitsuki behind and I'm certainly not going to lock him in a pen like those kitsune," insisted Boruto. "He's coming with us."

"But what if the dog won't help us because Mitsuki's around?" asked Denki. "Another kitsune could run by and the dog will only be focused on Mitsuki."

"He's right, Boruto. We have to do something about this."

He didn't know what to do. He wanted to keep Mitsuki near him but if the dog wouldn't cooperate because of him…

"We could split into groups of two," suggested Metal. "One group stays with Mitsuki and the other keeps the dog."

"We're not splitting up again," said Boruto. "Even if the group with the dog might be protected, those left without it run the risk of being transformed like Mitsuki. We'll find another way."

"The dog might also lose interest the more we keep going." Iwabe shrugged and looked at the group, seeing if anyone had made a decision.

They decided to keep going as a group. The fox led the group, looking back at the growling dog every now and then. When he tried to hide himself, the dog started barking and tried to chase after him. Having the fox in sight seemed to keep the dog less agitated.

After a while, the group had circled the park and found themselves back where they started. They grumbled, the dog growled and the fox kept quiet.

Then the dog gave a sharp bark and rumbling growl.

"It must be the kitsune," Boruto said, getting ready.

Just then, Mitsuki stepped out from behind a tree and looked at them.

"Boruto," said the human Mitsuki. "I thought I heard you."

"M- Mitsuki?"

"I tried to locate a kitsune on my own, thinking I had a better chance of getting it to talk, but then…" Mitsuki looked at the fox.

The fox looked back at him.

"… What is going on?"

The boys looked from the human Mitsuki to the fox.

If this was the one the dog kept barking at, then…

"You're not Mitsuki, are you?"

The fox looked at them. "Well…"

It bolted.

Mitsuki chased after it. Boruto dropped the leash to chase after them, too, and the dog scampered as fast as it could, barking all the while.

"Tricky little furball," growled Iwabe. "It probably disguised its voice to sound like Mitsuki to fool us."

"They are clever, gotta give 'em that," said Denki.

The group chased the fox down but Mitsuki was the one to catch it. He grabbed the fox from behind and held it tight. It wasn't going anywhere.

"We've gotta get back to Sarada and the others to cage this thing."

"Right."

Though captured, the dog kept barking.

* * *

Sai emerged from the woods with Seki and Reki. Naruto smiled at Sai's expression. He looked as if he were returning home after a long, fun day at an amusement park.

Tired but happy, Sai smiled at Naruto and expressed his thanks for the transformation.

He had spent so long trying to understand people that he never understood the benefits of not thinking like one. Though challenging, his experiences today made him feel like stepping into a lost childhood he never knew he needed.

It was fun just to run around and observe nature without needing to take notes or be lectured about how he needed to do better in order to be a shinobi.

"It's amazing, though," Sai said as he thought back on his adventure. "Play is a form of training but it's never forced upon them. It's not disguised or lectured. Kitsune play just to have fun but later on it benefits them while hunting. It wasn't intended to be but using the skills they picked up while playing, a kitsune is better able to hunt. Playing helps them get stronger but for them it was never a form of training but for fun. It just worked out that way."

Naruto nodded. "When they get older, I think they're able to make that connection but young kitsune are just being playful. Tag helps them learn hunting skills but they don't always see it as training. It's also a way to release stress. Training or playing, it just helps you feel better."

"You knew we needed a break, didn't you, Naruto?"

He shrugged. "I did this for a bunch of reasons. That was one of them."

"You also wanted us to change our perspective and learn as you did," added Sai. "And just for the sheer fun of it on your part."

Naruto chuckled. "Yeah, I guess you could say that. I kinda did want to change you guys because I thought it'd be fun."

"And to add an element of danger and need to the test, am I right?" asked Shikamaru, tilting his head. "My kid might have given up as soon as things became too difficult, but knowing his father's life was on the line, he couldn't give up. Just like a real mission. You can't just quit without consequences."

Naruto smirked. "Well, sometimes you do need to make a mission personal in order to complete it. You need to care at least a little."

Sai looked at Shikamaru. "You said you were going ahead to speak with Naruto. Was it about your response to the other day?"

Shikamaru sighed heavily. Apparently everybody knew he had been off lately.

"Yeah, we spoke about that."

"Well, given how so many people were making it your problem, I understand why you wanted to cage the kitsune until you had the matter sorted."

"I wasn't going to cage them. I don't know what I wanted. I just thought Naruto was letting too much slide." Shikamaru raised his head. "But I trust Naruto and I know he would never let any harm come to the village. He wants to protect it and its people. The fact that Naruto did what he did should have been enough for me to know that there was no real threat to the village. He knew what he was doing and I should have seen that at the time."

They may have disagreed but Naruto had everyone's best interest at heart. Many people thought Naruto should have been harsher to people who did wrong but Naruto had decent judgement and didn't want to create more enemies. He believed in second chances and could tell a threat to the village from a bunch of children playing pranks.

The kitsune turned their heads, as did the transformed ninja and Naruto. Another kitsune had arrived and perched on a branch above their heads.

It was Sonar.

Recognizing him immediately, Naruto greeted him and asked, "How's it going in there, Sonar?"

"There's only one left they have to find and they're on the verge of completing their task."

Naruto smiled. "Alright. I guess we should get ready, then. Let's start heading back."

Shikamaru sighed, giving his paws a wistful look. "I'm almost sorry I have to change back. I think I'm actually going to miss this, especially now that I've gotten the hang of it."

Sai walked beside him, smiling. "I know what you mean. I had a lot of fun, too."

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20:**

The groups met up with good news. Sarada's group managed to capture the remaining two kitsune and gathered them into a second carrier which they placed next to the first, overcrowded one. Every kitsune was unharmed albeit uncomfortable.

"And now we have the last of 'em," Boruto declared proudly.

Mitsuki held up the fox in his hands.

The dogs barked loudly.

"Then that's all nine of them. Perfect."

"But we still haven't found our dads," said Shikadai. "We rounded up all the kitsune but still haven't found them anywhere."

"Maybe they're with the Hokage," said Sarada.

"They could have gone back to their homes," said Metal.

"Or they're waiting it out at the Hokage building, for all we know," said Iwabe. "As long as we captured all the kitsune, it's fine."

"No, it's not," said Shikadai. "It bothers me that, though we've been to just about every corner of the village, we still haven't found a trace of our dads anywhere. Not to mention the other issues."

"What other issues?"

"Well, for starters… Boruto, do something about those dogs. I can't hear myself think."

The dogs kept barking at the fox Mitsuki was holding.

"Fine, fine. Let's get that thing in a pen."

Mitsuki stepped forward to put the fox into the carrier. That's when Boruto noticed that the dogs weren't barking at the fox. They were barking at Mitsuki.

"Just a second." Boruto put his hand on Mitsuki's shoulder.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Boruto narrowed his eyes at Mitsuki and tried to take the fox from him.

His hand went through the fox's body.

Everyone gasped.

The fox was an illusion.

But Boruto had heard it speak. The dog barked at it. But the illusion the other day was also convincing and made noise. Only no one could touch it.

For Mitsuki to show up and be the one to capture the fox without fear of it possessing him, and for the dog to keep barking…

Mitsuki saw the look in Boruto's eyes and smiled. "Heh…"

His grip tightened on Mitsuki's shoulder.

"You wanna tell me where Mitsuki is or should I just throw you in one of these pens as you are?"

The group closed in around him.

Mitsuki's yellow eyes darted back and forth. Then he sighed, slumping his shoulders theatrically. "Oh, well. Guess I'm caught."

Boruto took great pleasure in stuffing the kitsune into the pen while it was still using Mitsuki's form. He kicked the kitsune in the rest of the way so he could close the door and lock it. The kitsune then changed back into its normal, two-tailed form to turn itself around and peer at the ninja through the bars of the cage.

"Interesting how you knew I was transformed and not possessing him, hm?"

"You deliberately didn't change back so I would doubt you were using a transformation?" Boruto leaned down to frown at the kitsune. "I never doubt myself and I think I'm smart enough to know my friend's body from a lousy transformation."

"For a lousy transformation, it sure took you a while to figure it out."

Boruto grabbed the side of the cage and shook it. "What'd you say?"

"Boruto," Sarada said, grabbing his hand.

"At least I figure it out before you could free your friends." Boruto had to get in the last word before it dawned on him that Mitsuki wasn't with them. "What did you do with Mitsuki?"

The kitsune didn't answer.

Boruto stood up, looking back towards the park. He must still be in there.

With all the kitsune caged, there was no danger in him going off alone to find his friend.

The others knew they had to find Mitsuki as well and weren't willing to let Boruto go alone. Half agreed to stay with the kitsune and the other half went back to the park to find him.

They searched the park from top to bottom, under every bench and in every tree. Finally, Boruto found his friend laying against the trunk of a tree far from the walking trail. He seemed to be unharmed but it didn't stop Boruto from rushing over, begging him to be alright.

"Hey, Mitsuki," he called. "Mitsuki."

He didn't respond.

Worried, Boruto came closer and found that Mitsuki's eyes were closed. Boruto tapped the side of his face in an effort to wake him.

"Mitsuki."

He opened his eyes and sat up, stretching as if waking from a pleasant nap.

"Boruto." Mitsuki looked around. "The kitsune."

"We caught them all. Everything's fine."

Mitsuki smiled.

Everyone reunited outside the park, relieved that Mitsuki was alright. The dogs didn't bark at him at all.

"We still haven't found our dads," Shikadai reminded everyone. "And the thing that's been bothering me the most is why the kitsune were doing this in the first place."

"I wondered the same thing, too," said Mitsuki. "An enemy ninja would have assumed the form of someone with power or connections in order to gather information on the village for the purposes of war. Or possess the body of someone in power in order to twist things in their favor. Things like grant pardons to their allies or wright laws that would make it easier for them to have their way. I don't see the kitsune doing that. In fact, they haven't. None of the people they possessed are in power or hold any real footholds when it comes to gaining power."

"I doubt they would be interested in that anyway," said Shikadai. "They're animals. They have their own home in the wild."

"But they did attack your dad who's adviser to the Hokage," said Sarada. "That's something."

"Other than transform him, that wasn't really an attack. And the Hokage was aware he had been transformed so there wasn't much they could do."

"Speaking of attacks, despite their supposed power, the kitsune really didn't do that much attacking," said Mitsuki. "They were just hiding. Much quieter than the other day."

"But what was the point in them hiding?" asked Denki. "Was that really the extent of their plan?"

"If there even was a plan."

"Seems to me that they were just playing hide-and-seek."

"The kitsune I caught treated the whole thing like a game. It was even laughing and called attention to the fact that I caught it," said Boruto.

"Yeah. It seemed like they wanted us to specifically find them."

"But why would..?"

A loud poof sounded and the Hokage appeared in a puff of smoke. He was grinning from ear to ear.

Chuckling with pride, Naruto announced, "You guys did it! I'm so proud of you! I knew you could!"

The young ninja gaped, stunned at the the Hokage's sudden appearance and his words.

"You… you mean rounding up the kitsune?"

"Yup. You found and captured every single one. And not a single one harmed. Fantastic!" said Naruto. "You all pass!"

"Pass?" they said slowly.

"You mean… this was a test?" asked Sarada.

Naruto nodded up and down. "Yup. It was a test and you all passed. Great job, you guys."

Boruto punched his father in the stomach.

"You put the whole village in danger and put us through all that for some stupid test?" he spat. "You're such an idiot!"

"Boruto," Naruto said calmly, ignoring the punch to the stomach. "The village was never in any danger."

"Huh?"

"I told you before. These kitsune are my friends. We go way back. After Ryosuke came to take the kids home, I asked him for a favor," Naruto explained. "I asked him if he would be willing to help me test you guys for one day. He agreed to leave me some of his pack members for this under the condition that no harm come to them. I agreed. I don't want my friends getting hurt either."

Friends or not, Naruto suspected Ryosuke might be hesitant to trust him again if any member of his pack sustained injury, even on accident. After all, they normally avoided humans unless there was a special reason to approach.

Given what the youngest members of his pack had put the village through, Ryosuke might have felt obligated to assist Naruto with this little experiment.

"I took everything into consideration. I would never put my village in danger willingly. I'm here to protect everyone. For that reason, I had to make sure no lives, human or kitsune, were ever in danger. We planned it out together."

"I accounted for some of it, of course," said Shikamaru, stepping out from behind Naruto's legs.

"Dad!" Shikadai exclaimed.

Those who had not seen Shikamaru in this state gaped in awe. It was so strange seeing a fox talk using Shikamaru's voice, but he still retained many of his human features even as a fox. The eyes and way he held himself were easy giveaways.

"I helped with much of the planning to be sure no lives were risked and to take into account the actions of the innocent and those involved." Shikamaru threw a look in Naruto's direction. "However, being turned into a fox was never discussed with me. He kept that part of the plan to himself."

Naruto chuckled sheepishly.

"But there was a point to all of it, I can assure you."

"Of course, a lot of this was riding on my faith in you guys," said Naruto to the children. "I had to trust that you guys would follow my orders not to harm the kitsune in any way. I'm pleased that my faith in you guys wasn't broken."

"You also trusted us to make sure we wouldn't hurt innocent people, either," added Iwabe. "Though that was never a direct order from you, you still trusted us."

"But I don't understand," said Boruto. "Why put us through this? Why test us? We already passed our graduation exams and became real shinobi. What other lessons do we have to learn?"

"Plenty," said Shikamaru. "Graduation doesn't mean you're done learning. A lot of it happens on the field during missions. The exams were to see if you were ready to go on missions. Simple ones to get your feet wet. Then more advanced ones after you build up added strength and gain experience."

"But you never know what will happen on missions, so you must be prepared," added Naruto. "Sometimes you run into trouble on your way back. Some missions are more complicated than the employer lets on. Sometimes they lie so they won't have to pay as much for more dangerous missions. And sometimes missions are more complicated than even they were aware."

"You guys are all Genin. You're just starting out, but already you've seen battle. As you advance, you'll be taking on missions in which you will be risking your lives. The graduation exams can only teach you so much. There's applied learning and there's experience. You need both. But there's more than that. And you'll be seeing more of it as you prepare for the next stage of your work as shinobi."

"The Chunin exams are still months away, but it doesn't hurt to begin getting a taste for what they'll be like," said Naruto.

The Genin looked at each other.

"So this was all to prepare us for the Chunin exams?" Denki asked.

"A part of it, yes. Another part was to test something more important," said Naruto.

"What?"

"You bonds and your trust in each other."

They exchanged looks again.

"Please," Boruto said with a snide scoff. "Old man Kakashi already drilled us on that during the graduation exams. How we can't abandon our teammates and have to be united. We got that already."

Naruto shook his head, giving Boruto a stern look. "That's only a part of it. This is the next step."

"Next step? But we got it already."

Again, Naruto shook his head. "Kakashi's right about not abandoning your friends and working together. But its another thing to trust in them completely. That part he didn't test you on. And that's what this was about."

Boruto looked at him bewildered. Working together and trusting each other was the same thing, wasn't it?

"As you advance as shinobi, you will face greater perils and difficult challenges," Naruto told the group. "Even if you've passed your tests, even if you graduated with top scores, you are not the only ninja in the world. Somewhere out there, someone with skills like yours has also passed their exams with flying colors and at the top of their class. Someone you may one day face as your opponent. You cannot think you are unbeatable just because of your test scores. There are shinobi just as strong, if not stronger, than you are. You must be prepared for that. Which is why you must rely on your friends to help you."

"Which is why we have three-man squads for every mission," said Sarada, eager to show off how much she knew. "It's a perfectly balanced team, accounting for everyone's strength and weaknesses and different abilities. The numbers are also perfectly balanced. Too many people will draw attention and lead to more management. It's difficult to control a large party and have everyone do their part. But too few and the team won't have enough strength to complete the mission. If a member is captured, this leaves two who can rescue them. One acting as a distraction while the other moves in to rescue."

"Very good, but not quite."

Sarada was taken aback by this. "Huh? But…"

"A perfectly balanced squad of shinobi complementing each other's strengths, weaknesses and skills will only take you so far. If you do not trust them, you're doomed to fail."

"But if you're on the same team, and can use teamwork, doesn't that amount to trust?" asked Inojin.

"Not at all," said Naruto. "I happen to know from experience with a couple different squads that it's not the same. There was this guy on one team who believed he was better than everyone else and that his teammates would only hold him back. Because of this, he insisted on doing everything himself. This did not work. If you try to show off too much, you end up ruining a perfectly good sneak attack opportunity. Or you just end up getting hurt."

Shikamaru glanced his way for a moment before looking back at the children, knowing exactly what he was talking about.

Naruto gestured to Inojin. "Take your parents, for example. When your mom uses her jutsu in battle, she must trust that her body will be kept safe. That has little to do with teamwork. They could just as easily all coordinated their attacks without worrying about what happens to her while in a vulnerable state. And that can seriously hurt your team and the mission."

"If I didn't care about Ino's life and focused only on victory, I would be abandoning a friend and you wouldn't be here," Shikamaru said to Inojin. "If she didn't trust me to watch over her, she would have been reluctant to use her jutsu which in turn would weaken us as a whole."

"Going back to what I said about ninja from other villages," Naruto continued, "you're going to be battling other shinobi. Shinobi with your skills. If you can use a transformation jutsu, what makes you think your enemy can't also?"

Shikadai glanced at the carriers behind him. "The kitsune. They represented enemy ninja."

"Yes and no." Naruto pointed to Shikamaru. "Like kitsune, ninja can be tricky. You will come across missions in which you will know there's an enemy but won't know how many or what they look like. They may also have hostages. How will you be able to tell the difference between an enemy and an innocent? There will be missions in which you must infiltrate enemy territory. How will you be able to tell the difference between a real enemy and your comrade pretending to be one?"

"Just about everything in this test was meant to hone your skills and demonstrate what can actually happen on real missions," said Shikamaru. "And like the Yamanaka jutsu, an enemy might have a similar skill. Plus, the transformation jutsu Naruto mentioned before."

Naruro pointed to different members of the group. "Having a password was an excellent idea but as Sarada pointed out, it was flawed. Asking personal information was another good idea but would only work if you guys knew each other well. Demonstrating unique jutsu is another way to go but if used too often it depletes your chakra. You guys managed to find balance and you also noticed inconsistencies amongst your friends but only because you guys know each other so well and trust each other."

"But there will be times where you'll have to be assigned to a different group because of your skill set," said Shikamaru. "You'll be working with ninja you've never worked with before, or even spoken to. You'll be pressed for time, so it will be difficult to learn everything about each other. If an enemy makes their way into your group, how will you be able to tell the difference?"

"A few years ago, before you guys were old enough to enter the ninja academy, the sixth Hokage, Kakashi, petitioned to have an additional test integrated into the Chunin exams but the board originally denied it, saying that there was no need for this kind of test as it did not test a ninja's abilities or strength. Kakashi argued that if a ninja cannot tell the difference between their own comrade and a fake, how will the village be able to stop an enemy from infiltrating the Leaf? They'd be walking right through that gate side by side with those who are meant to be here. Because of this, they allowed the test to be done on a trial period."

It took Sarada and Mitsuki less time to realize that they would never experience the test for themselves than Boruto who wanted to ask why they went through their own test when they could have just waited to take Kakashi's during the Chunin exams.

"For the test, shinobi were gathered together in a room and told that one of them had been replaced by an impostor and it was up to them to figure out which one it was."

"Did they figure out which one? Did they pass?" asked Metal.

"No," said Shikamaru. "They failed."

"The majority failed this part of the exams because they didn't trust each other," said Naruto. "Most turned on each other and attacked one another in order to find the impostor. Some almost killed each other but the people running the test intervened before it got that far."

"They almost killed each other just to find out which one was a fake? Damn!" said Iwabe.

"The thing is," said Naruto, "that was a lie. There was never an impostor. The test was to see how well they knew each other, to see if they could tell the difference between themselves and an enemy assuming their form in some way."

"A lie? So they did all that for nothing?"

"I can't believe they would get so paranoid and turn on each other just because one person said something," said Chocho. "How stupid can people be?"

"Because of the poor results, the board denied Kakashi's wishes to make it a part of the exams. They said that they saw a record low of Chunin all because of the exam," said Shikamaru.

"Kakashi still believed it was necessary and I agree with him," said Naruto. "Some people might not think it's important but they don't get it. Which is a big part of why I wanted to do this test. My kitsune friends provided the perfect opportunity to give it another go but in a slightly different way."

"And the other skills for gathering information and dealing with potential hostages were also put to the test," said Shikamaru.

"Like not knowing how many enemies you could be facing." Naruto pointed to Denki and Iwabe. "You guys had great thinking to check the main gate of the village. Excellent work."

"Well, honestly, it was mostly Denki who thought of it."

"You guys still worked well together. And Mitsuki attempting to find out more about the enemy and their patterns through observation and scouting around in the other day's aftermath was also really great thinking."

"Were you watching us the whole time, Seventh?" Mitsuki asked Naruto. "You seem to know our moves so well despite not being here. Did you have an informant?"

Naruto smirked. "You're good, Mitsuki. Yes. I had a couple kitsune observe the situation and report back to me. They were there to make sure things didn't get out of hand in any way."

"So there were more and we did not notice."

"Don't worry about not finding them. They didn't count. Think of them as security cameras or teachers watching from a two-way mirror. Or is it one-way? I can never remember."

"But what about the people the kitsune possessed?" asked Boruto. "You still risked innocent villagers for this test. There was a chance we might have messed up or something."

Naruto gave him an assuring smile. "Most of those people were off-duty shinobi. A lot of them volunteered for this. I didn't risk anyone against their will. Especially not innocent civilians."

Off duty shinobi? No wonder they didn't recognize most of them. The village was packed with ninja but it was impossible for the Genin to know all of them. The Hokage and Shikamaru purposely used shinobi they hadn't encountered yet or be on a first name basis with. That would further test their abilities to gather information. It would be too easy if they already knew the ninja. On a real mission, they would be dealing with strangers most of the time.

"Mostly," Naruto said, placing a hand on his hip, "I wanted to test your trust in each other. And I'm pleased to say you all passed that test."

"Because we didn't try to kill each other?" Chocho asked.

"Well, there's that."

"But we still had an advantage because we know each other," said Shikadai. "We're on the same team and went to school together. It's a little different from working with ninja we never worked with before, selected because of our particular skills."

Naruto pointed to Shikadai. "You're on the same team and train together, right?"

"Yeah. Kinda just said that."

"How often do you guys hang out together outside of missions and training?"

"Hardly ever," he said. "It's troublesome enough being partnered up like our parents. Everybody expects us to hang out like our parents do or something, so we try not to."

"Yeah," said Chocho. "Just because we're on the same team or are the new Ino-Shika-Cho doesn't mean we have to spend time together or get along like we're besties."

"I never said you had to be best friends. I said you had to trust each other," said Naruto. "And given that you guys purposely try not to hang out together means you only know as much about each other as you show during training or your time at school. For some, it's not enough. They would be unable to answer personal questions about each other."

"If any of you were being controlled by another or replaced by an impostor, would you be able to spot the difference?" asked Shikamaru.

"We did when Chocho got possessed."

"It did take us a minute and Boruto was the first to notice," admitted Inojin. "Which kinda sucks because he's not even a member of our team and doesn't hang out with her that much. He might have just been lucky."

"We would have noticed eventually, but he's right," said Shikadai. "The longer it takes for us to notice, the more information we're giving to an enemy. It doesn't help that we were arguing over the plan, either. We might have noticed sooner."

"You guys couldn't agree on what to do?" asked Shikamaru.

The children hesitated to answer. Some shrugged, some looked away sheepishly. A couple quietly mentioned that they all had good ideas but had trouble selecting the best one to use.

"That's fine," said Shikamaru. "I wouldn't count that as a failure."

"But we couldn't find one plan to work with."

"Which is ok," he told them. "It's good to have more than one plan in case something doesn't work. You must be flexible. Besides, when dealing with a situation like this one where you have limited information all around, it's good to toss out ideas. If someone tells you something might not work, that's not always arguing. Not in a bad way. You're hashing out ideas."

"But part of what took us so long was that we couldn't agree on whether or not we should split up the group."

"But you worked it out. And there were pros and cons to doing either one. I'm sure you noticed that."

"But we wasted a lot of time," said Sarada. "If this had been a real invasion of the village, our enemy could have gotten important information while we were still figuring things out. I actually suggested that we split the group into two so one half could do our thing and the other half do theirs."

"Which would have made it easier for the enemy to replace us," grumbled Boruto. "Staying together limited that possibility."

"Did not!" snapped Sarada. "Chocho was with the group the whole time, never splitting up, and she still got possessed. That shows you that the possibility-"

"Guys," Shikamaru called loudly and their attention was once again on him. "I can tell you from personal experience that it's not always about getting things done quickly, even on time-sensitive missions. The objective was to stop the enemy and round them all up unharmed. You did that. It didn't matter how long it took you to do it as long as you did it. Shinobi run into issues all the time on missions which is why I told you that you need to be flexible."

"And having more than one plan is good thinking, too," said Naruto. "If an enemy made their way into your group, it might confuse them. And it's good to get all the bad ideas out first. And if the enemy is listening, they might not understand certain code words or hints during the planning. Announcing you're going to do one plan doesn't mean that's the one you're going to do. You guys can be just as tricky."

"Overall, you guys did well. And you managed to find all the kitsune. You didn't turn on each other."

"Even if you argued or suspected each other, you didn't ignore what needed to be done or attack each other. That's what the teams of the past failed to do. They lost faith in each other the second someone gave them false information. On missions, you never know if the information you're getting is correct or not. Some enemies use this to take you down from the inside. Again, no one was ever an impostor."

"So whether the kitsune replaced someone or not was irrelevant," said Sarada, looking at Naruto. "The object was to spark fear and mistrust in the group in hopes we would ignore them and take each other out."

"Very good."

"So you created a threat to us and a reason we could not throw in the towel by turning our dads into foxes, which also created a hostage situation," said Shikadai, putting everything together. "Like having a bag over someone's head and having to identify which one is the enemy and which is the hostage. You can't be too rash. Someone's life is on the line."

"But not every ninja feels that way," said Naruto. "Years back, when ninja were only focused on the mission at hand, they would willingly take out the hostage in order to get the enemy. If the mission didn't specify that the person had to remain alive, some ninja would cut through them when the enemy used them as a shield in order to stop their target."

"That's so heartless!"

"I know, but they didn't care. They believed that as long as you completed your mission, it didn't matter if you killed innocent lives or even abandoned your friends."

"The shinobi world saw some dark times," came Sai's voice. "Ninja would sacrifice each other for the sake of the mission. They wanted ninja to be emotionless tools, forgetting the fact that we are still human."

The fox version of Sai stepped around Naruto's legs and sat in front of the Genin.

"It was not only cruel but foolish," he went on. "By sacrificing ninja that way, you not only deprive a family of a loved one but you weaken the village. Those ninja have skills and jutsu the village could use on future missions and to protect the Leaf. If they cut through the tracking ninja, what's the village to do when they get a request for a tracking mission? Or if a ninja sacrifices or abandons the medic shinobi. Who will heal the injured? Who will provide backup? Not only is it heartless, but our numbers will dwindle. Ninja won't be the only things we'll lack if you behave in such a way."

"And some shinobi still think that way," admitted Naruto. "Some don't care because those lives don't directly effect them. Some wouldn't think twice about leaving a comrade behind or risk harming the innocent in order to obtain victory. Which was part of why I had these two transformed into foxes. I had a strong feeling none of you would try to hurt them even if they looked like the enemy. In the face of doubt, you still kept your wits and didn't turn your backs on anyone. For that I'm very proud."

"You could have still told us this was a test," complained Boruto. "Instead of making us think people were actually in danger."

"We wanted to see what you would do in a situation where you thought the threat was real," said Shikamaru. "After all, I'm sure Lord Sixth didn't tell you the true objective of your graduation exam until after you completed it."

They couldn't argue that.

"It's not just about skills and strength. It's about testing one's judgments and see the kind of calls they would make in addition to teamwork and trust." Mitsuki smiled to himself. "How interesting. Not too many would consider testing such a thing. But I see that there is a purpose. Makes me want to see what else the Leaf has to offer."

"If you already had an inkling how we would respond, what was the point of the test?" Boruto asked bitterly. "You already knew the answer."

"I could have been proven wrong. My gut can only tell me so much," said Naruto. "Besides, even if I knew the answer, you didn't. Now you guys know for yourselves."

"And this isn't just about prep for the Chunin exams," said Sai. "These tests and lessons will help you on missions and in your everyday life. I think it was necessary for you to understand that by finding it out this way rather than having us tell you or leaving it to chance. If we didn't trust you, we never would have allowed this to take place."

Naruto stepped forward. "I think we made our point and cleared up any confusion. Let's get you guys out of there."

He unlatched the two large animal carriers and swung the doors wide open. The kitsune squeezed past each other to freedom, both cages being over crowded, and scurried to a safe distance from the children.

One two-tailed kitsune tapped Shikamaru and Sai with its paws, reversing the curse it inflicted. Shikamaru and Sai's bodies began to grow as blue flame engulfed them. In seconds, they were on their hands and knees in the middle of the road, completely human.

"Dad!" Inojin ran up to Sai and threw his arms around him, both pleased at passing his test and relieved to see his father as a human being again after worrying all day that he may never see him without fur and paws.

Still on his knees, Sai embraced his son, who, from this position, was about his size.

Shikadai took a more laid-back approach to welcoming his father back, standing in front of him and giving a shy smile. Shikamaru pulled him in and hugged him with one arm to show his love.

Shikamaru and Sai looked down at the kitsune standing beside them.

"Thank you," they told it and the kitsune nodded in answer.

The kitsune started for the main gate now that their jobs were done. One lingered a moment to look at Mitsuki.

They stared at each other for a few seconds, speaking with their eyes. Then the kitsune turned and followed its pack toward the main gate. Mitsuki smiled in understanding.

As he watched the kitsune leave, he couldn't help feeling a twinge of longing. Whether it was to experience life as a kitsune as the adults had, a desire to speak again with the kitsune or simply feeling that he was parting from a teacher and friend he had just made, he couldn't tell. All he knew was that these mysterious, tricky creatures had something to offer him, if only it be a conversation, lesson or a sympathetic ear.

"I'll see them off," Naruto told the group. "Then I guess we resume the day from where we left off."

Boruto watched his father hurry to catch up with the kitsune. Hearing his father mention picking up where he left off, he could only assume that meant the paperwork he neglected for this.

If he could neglect paperwork to give him and his friends a test, why couldn't he do it and actually spend time with him? The whole day, he avoided him. All for a test. A test he didn't think he needed and knew he would pass anyway. It all seemed so stupid to him.

"What was it like?" Shikadai asked his father, helping him get to his feet.

"It was actually really fun," Shikamaru said with a smile. "I was annoyed at first but then I actually enjoyed myself."

"What'd you do, just run around all day?" asked Inojin to his father.

"Mostly, yes, but they came with lessons."

"What kind of lessons?"

"How to be a fox, for example. What they have to go through, how they think, how they behave and why. How to hunt and gather. That sort of thing."

"But you already know survival skills. Even we were taught it in class."

"Not like this. It's very difficult to do when you don't have hands or tools or even jutsu. And everything's so different when you're that close to the ground. Your senses are also sharpened and we needed some tips on how to control it. Having everything amplified in an instant really throws you off."

"They even taught us tricks for hunting and finding water and reading the ground. Things humans would never think to do. It was challenging to not think like a human. Some things were only obvious when it was shown to us and other things are still odd from a human perspective."

"Was it weird walking on four legs?"

"It took some getting used to but it became fun when you get the hang of it."

"Is it weird being on two legs again?"

"It felt weird at first but since we were only foxes for a day, it's not too bad. It's like swimming in the water all day then suddenly being on dry land, I guess."

"Since we only had the day to work with, they didn't get to show us the things they do at night. That's usually when they're active. They can see in the dark. I would have liked to experience that for myself."

"As a fox, were you colorblind?"

"Hm? No, actually. I'm not sure if that's actually true. Maybe only for actual foxes and kitsune are the exception."

"Did you learn any of their tricks?"

"They started to but we didn't master any. Sai stayed longer to practice while I went to find the Hokage."

Boruto sighed.

It seemed his friends had a lot to talk about and fathers who were willing to tell them everything.

* * *

Naruto knelt in front of his kitsune friends by the side of the road. The trio who spent the day with Shikamaru and Sai didn't venture into the village, still uncomfortable around humans. Though Seki had spent time with a handful of Naruto's friends in the past, he wasn't willing to enter a human village and meet all those children. Naruto understood and didn't pressure them to do so.

Many of them were willing to help out Naruto because they missed having the freedom to enter a human village. Even those who didn't want humans to discover them were willing to assist him because they could use their fox magic to hide and were dealing with children. Once promised they would not be harmed, most were willing to help their human friend with whatever he needed.

Overall, this was fun for them. They missed being able to just run around and trick humans.

Crouching down, Naruto gave his friends long looks, wishing they had more time to reminisce and play. He knew most of these foxes well from his first time in the mountain. A couple were the faces of kitsune he had only met after their curse had been lifted. He trusted them all and they did him.

Exhaling, Naruto smiled, wanting to say and do so much but knowing they had to return home with the kitsune who remained with Ryosuke and the young in the mountain. Only a few had come for this project and the rest stayed so that the mountain would be protected.

"You guys…"

"We know."

He would have liked to see them back to their home but couldn't.

Saying goodbye to Ryosuke wasn't any easier. After arranging everything, they chatted for a few minutes then he bid farewell and left for the mountain, nuzzling Naruto as he often did.

"It was great to see you all again," Naruto said, bending a little more to be at their level. "Thank you for doing this."

The kitsune gathered around to nuzzle him and give him a few parting words, joking, laughing, praising and just being the friends he always carried in his heart.

"I wish we had more time to just… Hang out and do what we did in the past. You take care of yourselves, ok?"

"I'm sure we'll see each other again."

"If Ryosuke allows it, we can visit you."

"And you can us."

Naruto chuckled. "If I ever get the time to do so…"

"Even Ryosuke has time to socialize with us. Not everything is duty and whatnot. Do ninja leaders not have time to rest or speak with their family and friends?"

"We do, but it often seems that everybody wants something and I want to help out as many people as I can."

"Ryosuke wishes the same but even he only meets with the king on occasion. It is not every week. Or month. There is no set time. When he must, he must."

"And even as the leader, he does not do everything for us. We are not newborns. We can do things on our own."

"Yeah," said Naruto. "But I don't want people to think I'm not involved. That I just sit behind a desk all day and bark orders for other people to follow. I want to have a hands-on approach. Not just for me but so the village can see that they can rely on me."

"Does the village include your family?"

"Of course it does."

"Well, surely your family and village will understand if you need time to rest or do something special for yourself."

"Yeah, but they might think…"

"From our history, we know that if someone wishes to complain, they will find something," said Aurora. "You will either be working too hard or not at all. A menace or a fable. Opinions have an impact on you but they should not change you."

Naruto paused. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

"As you've assured our leader, let us assure you that you have not changed. Just be careful not to spread yourself too thin, yes?"

Naruto smiled. "Right."

The kitsune started down the path towards home, Naruto standing in the grass, waving and calling after them. They shouted their goodbyes, wagging their tails and Naruto waving his hand.

"Visit us!" a kitsune called before following the others.

"Take care, guys!"

In the dense forest, Naruto could clearly make out their howling salute to him. "Narutoooooo!" He waved though they were long out of sight and stood staring into the trees, listening for any residual rustling or faint howls.

When all was quiet, Naruto slowly turned and went back into the village.

* * *

He tried to return to his office but found Shikamaru standing in front of the door, talking to a woman wearing a stern expression on her face. Naruto stood, watching to see how things would play out.

Shikamaru did a fantastic job handling the older woman, getting back in touch with his usual self and not letting anything she said get to him. He seemed a lot more mellow than the other day. Clearly his time running through the forest as a fox had worked wonders.

When Shikamaru was finished dealing with the woman, he turned to Naruto and said, "Go home."

"Huh?" Naruto was surprised. "But a whole day of paperwork I never got around to doing because I was…"

Shikamaru wouldn't take no for an answer. "I've cleared your whole day, remember? We didn't know how long it would take the kids so I cleared everything. Just because they finished early doesn't mean you have to resume the work if I pushed it all for tomorrow."

"Now doesn't that sound lazy?" Naruto raised his brow.

He smirked. "Even if you get on top of it, it will still be there. Just take a day. We all need one."

Naruto smiled. "Thanks, Shikamaru."

"No problem."

He and Shikamaru rarely took vacations given their jobs so Naruto had thought it would be nice to force one upon his friend after seeing his mounting stress. Now Shikamaru was returning the favor.

It might not have been the same as running and playing as a fox in order to relieve stress, but seeing his family was just as rejuvenating.

Naruto walked down the street towards his house, looking forward to eating Hinata's cooking while it was still hot. It had been a while since he had eaten dinner with the whole family and missed it.

He started smiling at the thought of everyone gathered around the table, sharing a meal as well as the details of their day.

Naruto paused, seeing his son outside a game store, staring at a poster of his favorite video game character. Naruto stepped off the path to join his son.

"Hey."

Boruto looked up in surprise then resumed his usual scowl, assuming his father was going to come up with some excuse not to go home and how he sure hurry before his mother got worried.

"We'd better get going," Naruto said. "Your mom's making dinner and could use an extra pair of hands."

Boruto didn't say anything.

"Come on."

He looked at his father. He was waiting for him.

"You're gonna walk me back then go back to work?"

"Nah. I'm done for the day. Took the rest of the night off. Let's go before it get too late."

Boruto turned and willingly went with his father down the street.

They walked side by side in silence. Boruto kept wanting to say something but felt awkward. As much as he liked walking with his father, it felt weird given its infrequency. He was also concerned his father would suddenly remember something and rush off, leaving him to continue his walk home alone.

Naruto seemed pleased to be walking with his son. He was smiling.

Boruto looked away.

"Dad…"

"Yeah?"

He found the only way to speak with him was through anger and resentment. He should have been able to talk to him like a normal person, but Boruto could only find his voice when he was complaining.

"Why'd you put us through all that? After the other day with the other ones…"

"I already told you why."

"Yeah, but…" Boruto frowned. "It was still a pain."

"Didn't you have some fun?"

He shrugged. Honestly, he did but he couldn't let Naruto know that.

"Kitsune are powerful creatures," said Naruto. "I figured they would be best at simulating powerful ninja you could be facing in the future. And it's nice to think outside the box, don't you agree?"

"For powerful creatures, we were able to take them down super easily."

"That's because they were holding back."

"If they were holding back, doesn't that defeat the purpose of testing us?"

Naruto shook his head. "Not for the purpose of that particular test. I told you, I wanted to test your trust in each other. If you can't trust each other, it'll weaken your team, even if you can work together. Someone's going to hold back because they lack faith or might try to do too much to compensate. Trust is important."

"I know that."

"And now everyone was able to see it for themselves. You all did very well and I'm proud of you."

Boruto forced himself to frown even though he liked hearing his father's praise.

Curious, Boruto then asked, "So… Um. How powerful are kitsune anyway?"

"That depends," said Naruto. "The more tails they have, the more power they possess."

"Yeah. But I mean, well, their power is similar to a shinobi's, right?"

"Yeah, kind of."

"So all they can do are the things we saw, right?"

"No, they can do more than that."

"Like what?"

"Well, if enough kitsune get together and have enough tails, they can create an illusion so powerful and convincing that it would be impossible to tell if from reality."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Even more powerful and convincing than genjutsu."

"Then why couldn't they have done that for us during the test than run around the actual village, you know? Wouldn't that have been better?"

Naruto shook his head again. "No. I thought of that at first but it had a bunch of problems. One was the number of kitsune. They might not have had enough to pull it off. Plus, if we had done that, I think it would have confused you guys even more. Wondering if this was real or if anyone was real. That sort of thing. A part of me was worried you guys wouldn't believe me when I told you it was all a test and assume I was a kitsune trying to trick you."

Boruto did wonder that for about a second, but he knew that it was really Naruto and that everything had been settled.

"Plus, just like jutsu, doing an illusion like that requires a lot of energy. If a shinobi had to use a powerful jutsu for a whole day, like for maintaining a barrier, it would leave the user drained. Same thing for a kitsune. It'd be exhausting."

"What other kinds of things can they do?" Boruto asked. "Aside from transformation, illusion and possession?"

"Tons, depending on their tails. They can dream-walk, where they can communicate to you though your dreams, even change them. Talk to animals. When you get as many tails as Ryosuke, you can travel between the borders of this world and the spirit realm. His strides have gotten longer, too. Almost like he can fly."

"What else?"

Naruto thought a moment then said, "You know, I'm not sure. It's been a while since they've had a fox with more than five tails, so I'm not sure even they know."

"Do they automatically know when they get that extra tail?"

"I guess so. I'm not sure how it works. They seem to understand but need to practice in order to do it well. Like my one friend who got turned into a raccoon instead of a fox like the kitsune was trying to do. We just left him like that for a while. I think he can do it better now."

"But that's a curse, not a transformation, right?"

"Right. Transformation affects the fox. Curse is something else that can affect everyone but the caster, whereas transformation only affects the caster."

"But curse just turns a person into an animal, doesn't it?" Boruto asked.

"Actually, a curse takes something away from the afflicted person, so it can be many things."

"How is turning into a fox getting something taken away? That doesn't make any sense."

"It takes away the human form and replaces it with something else," explained Naruto. "People have also been turned into glass objects or paintings. But a kitsune curse can also take away a person's jutsu. Or their emotions. A kitsune was once able to take away a person's feelings until all they could feel was hate and a need for revenge. Turned into a whole other person. Once the curse was broken, they returned to their quiet, understanding selves and felt so bad about what they had done."

"A kitsune can control a person's emotions?"

"Well, not control, exactly. It's complicated. I've only seen it done. I've never actually done it myself since I never had more than one tail."

Boruto looked at him. "You mean you were a kitsune once, too?"

"Yeah. I thought I told you. That's how I met them. A bad kitsune turned me into a fox and that's how I met Ryosuke and the others who taught me how to be a kitsune and control my powers."

Somehow during their conversation, it became easier for Boruto to talk to his father without displaying any anger. He even caught himself laughing a couple times. He couldn't remember the last time they spoke like this. It came so naturally. Even if Naruto ever wanted to talk to him calmly, Boruto would always find a way to make it difficult or focus on his anger and have it do the talking for him.

Having a normal conversation was surprisingly easy. And enjoyable.

When Boruto and his father reached the front gate of their home, Boruto asked him one more question.

"Why'd you have the kitsune teach Shikamaru and Sai how to be foxes? I get that you wanted the whole element of danger there, so you had them transformed, but you could have had them stay hidden somewhere."

"Where's the fun in that?" Naruto grinned. "I did it because I thought it'd be good for them. Shikamaru had been so stressed lately that I felt I had to do something. And sometimes running around playing a game of tag in the woods with a bunch of playful foxes is just what you need to feel better. Like reverting to childhood in a way."

"And Sai?"

"He gets stressed, too. But I also thought it'd be good for perspective. And it would have been pretty boring to just sit around all day. Might as well have some fun."

Boruto stopped on the front step.

"What about you?" he asked. "You work there longer than anybody. Even Shikamaru goes home before you do sometimes. When do you get a break? Don't you get stressed?"

Naruto stood beside his son, one foot on the bottom step, and said, "Of course, I do."

"Then..?" Boruto prompted.

Naruto looked down.

He wanted a family of his own and show love and support to his children. At times, he didn't know what he was doing and often asked Hinata if what he was doing was enough. The rest of the time, he let his instincts guide him. During those times, he found it was relatively easy to play with them and make them laugh. To tell them he loved them. Even worry and lecture them because more than anything he wanted them to be safe.

He wanted them to live their lives but be safe.

He knew Boruto was very similar to himself and a part of him felt Boruto would figure things out as he had at his age. Then his instincts would kick in and he would try to protect his child and keep him from making foolish mistakes that could get him killed.

He had to find a balance.

But he couldn't help how he felt.

Anymore than Boruto could help his feelings.

"Boruto," he said earnestly. "I love you. And your sister and Hinata. You're my family and I always wanted a family. But I told you before, the village is also like my family. I have to be there for them and protect them."

"Yeah, I heard it before." Boruto turned away.

"Then you also heard what I said earlier today, right? About the past and past mistakes." Naruto bent to peer at Boruto's scowling face. "If I neglect my duties, I'd be neglecting you and everyone in the village. I'm trying to make this a safe place for you and Himawari to grow up. A place where I won't have to see my kids grow up thinking they're nothing but expendable tools."

Boruto glanced at him but wouldn't drop his frown.

"I'm trying to make his place better. Better for you and everyone. For my friends and their kids. I don't want any of us growing up in a place where we have to fear war or being attacked by other villages. We have allies now. These are peaceful times compared to the past. I want you guys to be able to live and live well. Do you understand?"

Boruto pouted as he shrugged.

"I'm trying my best to be there for everyone. I'm sorry I'm not around as often as you want but I promise to make time for you when I can. Just try to understand that what I'm doing is for your sake and the sake of my family. I want to protect you and as the Hokage I feel I have a better chance of doing that and doing that well. Ok?"

Boruto wouldn't meet his eyes.

Naruto put a hand on his shoulder to make him turn. He bent down further and made eye contact with Boruto.

"There's not a thing I wouldn't do for you guys," he said firmly but gently.

As he said this, Boruto's frown disappeared.

Any retort or argument or condition or sarcastic remark he could make was impossible when he saw the look in his father's eyes.

As annoying as he could be, Boruto loved his father and found it impossible to doubt his words when he saw those caring blue eyes of his.

He couldn't be cross with him after hearing that. As much as he wanted to act like it didn't matter, Boruto couldn't pretend.

Naruto smiled at him, patted his back and straightened up. "Come on. Wonder what your mom's making for dinner tonight."

They opened the door together and stepped inside. Removing their shoes at the door, Naruto and Boruto walked to the kitchen door and started to slide it open.

"We're home!" Naruto announced.

"Welcome back," said Hinata. "How'd things go?"

"Hi, Daddy!" Himawari chirped from the kitchen counter, struggling to hold a bowl between her paws as she helped her mother with dinner.

"Hima…"

"…wari…"

"Look, Big Brother! I'm a fox! Neat, huh?"

Boruto stared open-mouthed at his sister's orange furry body at a complete loss for words.

He looked to see his father's reaction and found him just as stunned as he was.

She didn't seem to mind, giggling all the while, trying to live her human life as a fox, as clumsy as it was. She couldn't use a spoon so she lapped up the soup her mother had her taste-test from the tiny bowl in her paws.

"Sonar made me a fox, Daddy," she said proudly.

"He did, did he?" Naruto's eye twitched.

He should have known. He was pretty sure the kitsune encouraging him to visit soon was Sonar, purposely transforming Himawari to give him the perfect excuse. After all, a kitsune curse didn't wear off. It had to be removed by the kitsune responsible.

"Tricky little…"

"Dad?" Boruto asked, concerned his sister would be stuck like this forever.

Hinata, already accustomed to her daughter's new form, looked at Naruto expectantly.

Naruto's shoulders slumped, knowing his work would have to wait a little longer.

Then smiled, knowing he would see his kitsune friends sooner than expected and get to spend more quality time with his children at the same time.

"I guess I'm taking a personal day tomorrow." He looked down at Boruto. "How would you feel about a road trip to the mountain?"

Momentarily stunned, Boruto blinked at his father. Then he grinned.

* * *

The end!

Hope you enjoyed reading the 4th Fox Fire fiction.

Thanks for reading and please review! ^-^


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